Department for Transport

Railways: Electrification

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the proposed timescales are for the completion of the business case work for the electrification of the Southport to Salford Crescent and Kirkby to Salford Crescent railway lines set out in the March 2015 report of the North of England Electrification Task Force.

Andrew Jones: The report of the independent North of England Electrification Task Force made recommendations on the prioritisation for a rolling programme of electrification of all currently unelectrified lines in the North, in three tiers. It recommended that full business case analysis of all Tier 1 schemes should be urgently progressed. Both Southport-Salford Crescent and Kirby-Salford Crescent were placed in Tier 1.The Task Force’s recommendations are being taken into account by Network Rail as it prepares an updated national electrification strategy based on a comprehensive sifting and appraisal process. The strategy will be subject to public consultation this year and will inform the Government’s Rail Investment Strategy for 2019-2024.

Road Traffic Offences: Prosecutions

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2015 to Question 19163, what assessment his Department has made of reasons for changes in the level of prosecutions for tachograph violations.

Andrew Jones: Although the numbers of prosecutions in relation to drivers' hours and tachograph offences decreased in 2014/15 from previous years, the number of offences found actually increased. In 2013/14 the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency found 10,283 drivers' hours and tachograph offences, whereas in 2014/15 DVSA found 15,183.The main reason for the decrease in prosecution figures was a drive to deal with all but the most serious offences by way of fixed penalty, freeing up court time and making more effective and efficient use of enforcement resources in line with Government policy.

Bexleyheath Railway Line: Landslips

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22575, whether failure to inspect equipment or buildings situated adjacent to Bexleyheath rail line contributed to the line being blocked during the week beginning 11 January 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22573, what equipment and buildings of any kind situated along the side of the Bexleyheath rail line were damaged in the landslides which blocked the line during the week beginning 11 January 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: Network Rail has advised that a signalling control cabinet was pushed over by the recent landslip at Barnehurst, and then had to be moved to a location away from the affected area to enable access to temporarily stabilise the landslide. This involved moving the staging on which the cabinet was sited, the cabinet itself, and the cables.Network Rail further advises that the earthwork was last examined on 5 February 2015, when its condition showed no signs of impending failure. Its condition prior to the earthworks failure was such that its next inspection would have been three years from that date.

Bexleyheath Railway Line: Landslips

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22574, for what reasons, during the closure of the Bexleyheath rail line during the week beginning 11 January 2016, (a) Southeastern services on adjacent lines were cancelled, (b) there was a lack of information about alternative services and (c) staff had no information to pass onto customers about alternative services or when replacement bus services would arrive; what systems were put in place to communicate regular updates of information to staff so customers could be given accurate advice; what advice was given to staff regarding assistance for people with disabilities; what steps he is taking to determine whether the responses to the situation from Network Rail and Southeastern were adequate; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: Following the unfortunate landslip at Barnehust, it was necessary to close the line serving Bexleyheath in order that repairs could be carried out.As a result of the Bexleyheath line closure, Southeastern have had to run more trains on the adjacent lines to provide extra capacity for passengers. This led to minimal cancellations to the scheduled timetable on adjacent lines.Information regarding alternative travel arrangements was provided by posters at affected stations, station announcements, on National Rail Industry systems, the Southeastern website and on social media.Staff were given regular updates on the alternative travel arrangements and station announcements were made where appropriate. Replacement buses were in operation between Lewisham and Dartford via Bexleyheath in both directions. Other bus services were accepting Southeastern tickets, additionally, Docklands Light Railway and London Underground were accepting tickets where appropriate. Regular updates were provided to station management, who provided briefings to their station staff. The Passenger Assist service was in effect and Southeastern staff were advised to book taxis from stations that were not accessible for those passengers who required them.My officials were in regular contact with Southeastern and Network Rail, who ensured that the line was opened as quickly as possible and that passengers were kept informed at all times.

Home Office

Abduction: Children

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many child abduction warning notices were served by police forces in England in the last 12 months; and how many such notices related to children aged 16 and 17.

Mike Penning: Child Abduction Warning Notices are currently used by the police as a deterrent against those thought to be grooming children, where the child is under the age of 16 if living at home, or under the age of 18 if living in the care of a local authority. These notices are a useful tool for the police and complement the strong new powers to protect the vulnerable from sexual predators that we introduced in the Serious Crime Act 2015. For example, breach of an Abduction Notice can become grounds for the issuing of a Sexual Risk Order.There is no statutory or other legislative provision dealing specifically with the issue of Child Abduction Warning Notices; the Notices are part of an administrative process. Breach of a Notice is not a criminal offence and as such the police do not regularly record the number of Child Abduction Warning Notices issued.

Asylum: Syria

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many refugees from the Syrian conflict relocated in the UK to date are (a) adults with a vulnerable characteristic, (b) adults in a family unit, (c) adults not in a family unit or with a vulnerable characteristic, (d) children with parents and (e) unaccompanied children.

Richard Harrington: Holding answer received on 22 January 2016



The Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme is based on need and prioritises those who cannot be supported effectively in their region of origin. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is responsible for identifying people in need of resettlement based on its established vulnerability criteria, which are: women and girls at risk; survivors of violence and/or torture; refugees with legal and/or physical protection needs; refugees with medical needs or disabilities; children and adolescents at risk; persons at risk due to their sexual orientation or gender identity; and refugees with family links in resettlement countries.The Home Office is committed to publishing data as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The next set of figures will be in the quarterly release on 25 February 2016 and will cover the period October-December 2015. This adheres to the standard practice for the release of information about the work of the department, both through the quarterly national statistics and the additional transparency data that is released, which ensure that statistics are published properly in a way which is open and accessible to all. This information will not include a breakdown of the vulnerability criteria, or the family composition of the refugees that have been resettled.

Legal Systems: Islam

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects to publish her Department's review of Sharia courts; and if she will make a statement.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 22 January 2016



The Home Secretary has commissioned a full, independent review to enhance our understanding of any misuse of Sharia law. The review will report to the Home Secretary before the end of this year.

Police

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what requirement there is for a person to reveal their identity when requested to do so by a police officer.

Mike Penning: There are various requirements for a person to provide their name and address to reveal their identity to the police.These include:- the Road Traffic Act (RTA) 1988, for example, Section 164 gives constables the power to require the production of a driving license; and Section 165 RTA 1988 gives constables the power to obtain names and addresses of drivers and others, and to require production of evidence of insurance or security and test certificates. Full details of the Act can be seen here: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/52/contents- the Police Reform Act, which also gives powers to Police Community Support Officers to require the provision of a name and address in certain circumstances. Full details of the Act can be seen here: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2002/30/schedule/4/paragraph/1A -- the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 which can require a person to reveal their identity in certain circumstances in connection to suspecting them of a specific offence and arrest. Full details of the Act can be seen here: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1984/60/contents

Metropolitan Police

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the (a) longest, (b) shortest and (c) average time serving police borough commanders have been in post in London boroughs.

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police borough commanders there have been in post in each London borough since 2008.

Mike Penning: The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the number of police borough commanders in each London Borough, or the length of time that they have been in post. This information is likely to the held by the Metropolitan Police Force.

Offenders: Deportation

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what provision is made for victims of crimes committed by foreign prisoners to access information about the progress of their deportation.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ferries: Security

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to increase border security at ferry ports.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Radicalism

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if the Government will hold a formal public consultation on proposed extremism disruption orders which makes reference to issues of free speech before bringing such proposals to the House.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 26 January 2016



The Government has engaged widely on the Counter-Extremism Strategy and will continue to do so. This includes on any proposals to prevent and disrupt extremist activity.The Government will continue to protect freedom of speech and the right to practice any faith or none. These are two of the values that the Counter-Extremism Strategy is designed to uphold.

Worker Registration Scheme

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to ensure that registration on the Worker Registration Scheme between 2009 and 2011 has no bearing on any subsequent application to naturalise as a British citizen.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Firearms

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department has taken to consult farmers and the agricultural sector on its firearms policy.

Mike Penning: Home Office officials recently met the Countryside Alliance, along with other interested groups, to discuss the proposed revisions to the European Firearms Directive. In 2014-15, the Home Office consulted widely on the increase to the firearms fees administered by the police made in 2015. From the consultation responses received, 8% of respondents identified as farmers and 6% as gamekeepers. We are also aware that the Countryside Alliance contributed to the Law Commission consultation on the review of firearms law.

Refugees: Syria

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the number of Syrian refugees brought to the UK under the Private Sponsorship Scheme will be in addition to the Government's commitment to take 50,000 refugees over the next five years.

Richard Harrington: The Prime Minister announced on 7 September 2015 that the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement (VPR) scheme would be expanded to resettle 20,000 Syrians in need of protection during this Parliament.We will build on offers of support to develop a community sponsorship scheme to allow individuals, charities, faith groups, churches and businesses to support refugees directly.

Refugees: Syria

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Private Sponsorship Scheme for Syrian refugees; and what estimate she has made of the number of people likely to participate in that scheme.

Richard Harrington: The Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme is based on need and prioritises those who cannot be supported effectively in the region. As the refugees that are being resettled may have medical, social care or other needs, all of the arrivals to date have been placed with local authorities which are being provided with funding to ensure these needs can be addressed.We will build on offers of support to develop a community sponsorship scheme to allow individuals, charities, faith groups, churches and businesses to support refugees directly. This is why we are now working with the individuals and groups who have made offers on developing a sustainable model for helping vulnerable people settle and integrate in the UK and, where they are able, find employment.We are consulting international partners to understand how their schemes work, and with partners in the UK to make sure we design a scheme which works well here.

Litvinenko Inquiry

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost was to the public purse of the public inquiry into the death of Alexander Litvinenko; and what the average cost was to the public purse of inquiries into suspicious deaths undertaken by coroners over the last three years.

Karen Bradley: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Criminal Investigation

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average cost was to the public purse of police investigations into suspicious deaths over the last three years.

Mike Penning: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Vetting

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if police forces will be required to provide information to the Disclosure and Barring Service where a person has been arrested and bailed pending an investigation into their alleged offences.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has (a) guidelines issued and (b) imposed rules on police forces relating to the specific information required to be provided to the Disclosure and Barring Service to appear on an individual's record; and if she will make a statement.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 26 January 2016



The Home Secretary issues guidance to chief officers of police under section 113B(4A) of the Police Act 1997, which they must have regard to in making decisions about providing information from police records for inclusion in enhanced criminal record certificates.This guidance extends, for example, to information held by the police relating to someone being arrested and bailed.

Police: Stun Guns

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police officers in (a) Burnley, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West are trained to use tasers.

Mike Penning: The Home Office does not hold information centrally on the number of police officers who are trained to use Taser.Taser deployments in each police force area are an operational matter for Chief Officers. This includes decisions on the number of specially trained officers deployed with Taser, which is based on the assessment of threat and risk.

Refugees: Syria

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that refugees admitted to the UK from Syria are provided with the necessary support to enable them to integrate into British society.

Richard Harrington: The Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme is based on need and prioritises those who cannot be supported effectively in the region. Local authorities are expected to provide refugees that they resettle with a 12 month support package which is tailored according to their individual needs. As well as accommodation and addressing any medical and social care needs, this also includes cultural integration and English language tuition. This is funded using the overseas aid budget as it is giving support to refugees that would otherwise be provided overseas.At the Spending Review, the Government committed £129 million to assist with local authority costs over years 2-5 of the scheme. This will be allocated on a tariff basis over four years, tapering from £5,000 per person in their second year in the UK, to £1,000 per person in year five. There will also be a special cases fund to assist the most vulnerable refugees. This is a substantial level of funding which will enable local authorities to support these vulnerable people as they rebuild their lives in safe and secure surroundings, among supportive communities in the UK.We are working with offers of support from community groups and inidividuals to see how we can best take them up to further help people settle and integrate, and, where possible, find employment in the UK.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Commonwealth: Honours

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether a distinction is made by the Government between Commonwealth Realm Orders and decorations where Her Majesty the Queen is Sovereign of the Order and an order where the Governor General as Her Majesty the Queen's representative is the Head of the Order; whether there is a reciprocal recognition policy in place between each of the Commonwealth Realms concerning titular honours; and whether there has been any change in his Department's rules on that policy in the last two years.

James Duddridge: The recognition of foreign honours is a matter for the Royal Prerogative and is governed by convention. The convention has not changed in the last two years. My Department does not set rules or regulations for these matters.The main distinction between Orders of which Her Majesty The Queen is Sovereign and those where The Queen is not Sovereign is that The Queen approves and appoints recipients of all awards in the former and the recipients can apply to receive their awards at an investiture in the UK.There is no reciprocal recognition policy in place between each of the Realms concerning honours and associated titles. Whether a title associated with an honour awarded by one Realm is recognised in a second Realm is a matter for the second Realm.

Commonwealth: Honours

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the distinction is between the Sovereign's formal and informal permission in his Department's rules and regulations on the use, style and designation in the UK accorded to British and dual nationals of Commonwealth realms who are recipients of a titular knighthood or titles of honour in any of those realms; and whether UK dual nationals residing in or visiting the UK may continue to use such titles as a courtesy title.

James Duddridge: The recognition of foreign honours is a matter for the Royal Prerogative and is governed by convention. My Department does not set rules or regulations for these matters. The Sovereign does not give permission for the formal use of the title “Sir” in the United Kingdom; only those British nationals, including dual nationals, awarded British knighthoods may use the title “Sir” in a formal context in the United Kingdom. The Sovereign acts with the advice of the Government. In giving advice or administering any relevant aspects of these matters, the Government follows the relevant convention. Nationals of all the Realms, awarded a British knighthood, are entitled to use the title “Sir” in the United Kingdom. The titles of Realm nationals, who are not British, and have been awarded a knighthood by their own country, are recognised in the United Kingdom as an official courtesy. Titles associated with awards to dual British nationals are not recognised as an official courtesy in the UK.

Commonwealth: Honours

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether UK nationals who are also nationals of other Commonwealth realms are required to renounce their UK citizenship if they wish to use a titular honour or knighthood granted to them by Her Majesty the Queen or her representatives in right of another of her Commonwealth Realms or Overseas Territories; and whether his Department's rules on the use, style and designation of honours to dual nationals has changed in the last two years.

James Duddridge: If a Realm honour has been awarded to an individual when they were a British national, whether or not they were also a national of that Realm, then permission will not be given for the use of a title at a later date if the recipient later renounces their British nationality.The titles of Realm nationals, who are not British, and have been awarded a knighthood by their own country, are recognised in the United Kingdom as an official courtesy. Official courtesy means that other parties, including official bodies, may refer to the individual’s title if they wish to do so.The recognition of foreign honours is a matter for the Royal Prerogative and is governed by convention. The convention has not changed in the last two years. The Foreign & Commonwealth Office does not set rules or regulations for these matters.

Western Sahara: Referendums

Mr Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2015 to Question 1543, on Western Sahara: referendum, whether any referendum would put forward a choice between independence for Western Sahara and integration of that region with Morocco.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The terms and choices of a referendum on the status of Western Sahara are for Morocco and the Polisario Front to agree as the two parties to the dispute. The UK fully supports UN-led efforts to encourage both parties to agree a lasting and mutually acceptable political solution that provides for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.

UK Membership of EU

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the UK has agreed to fund particular EU projects as a result of discussions with his EU counterparts as part of the renegotiation of the UK's relationship with the EU.

Mr David Lidington: No.

Mauritania: Human Rights

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Mauritania.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We last assessed the human rights situation in Mauritania in November 2015 before Mauritania's Universal Periodic Review ahead of the UN Human Rights Council. Officials continue to monitor human rights in Mauritania and raise our concerns with the Mauritanian authorities at the highest levels.

Capital Punishment

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what guidance (a) has been issued and (b) his Department plans to issue in 2016 to UK diplomats in states with the death penalty on representing the Government's position on the use of that penalty.

Mr Philip Hammond: Holding answer received on 22 January 2016



The Government opposes the use of the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle but I have no plans to issue prescriptive guidance to posts on how they represent the Government’s position on the death penalty. UK Heads of Mission are best placed to judge what the most effective course of action will be, according to local circumstances.

Hassam Mushiema

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Bahraini government on the provision of medical treatment to Mr Hassam Mushiema.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are aware of the case of Hassam Mushiema and we have raised it with the Government of Bahrain. We continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments and to appropriately address all reports of ill-treatment of detainees. In parallel, we encourage all those with concerns about their treatment in detention to report these directly to the Ombudsman.

Kurds: Overseas Students

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has received on the refusal of the Kurdistan Regional Government to pay tuition fees and living expenses to Kurd students studying in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are aware of instances of non payment of fees by the Kurdistan Regional Government and that a number of students and universities have been affected by the current situation in the Middle East. The Government is continuing to work with Universities UK and the Higher Education International Unit to identify ways to enable students from the region to continue their studies in the UK.A cross government body, the Responding to International Students Crisis Committee (RISC), has been established to look into issues faced by international students who have their studies disrupted due to crises in their home countries. The RISC provides a co-ordinated Government response on these issues so that affected parties know where to go for advice and guidance.The Government is committed to ensuring that international students are looked after by our universities as part of our efforts to maintain the excellent reputation our higher education sector enjoys overseas. However there is no scope in the existing student support legislation for the Government to provide funding support for students in the UK. Students facing such difficulties should speak to their University.

Somaliland: Electoral Register

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of progress in electoral registration in Somaliland; and what support the UK is providing for that process.

James Duddridge: The UK, together with Denmark and the EU are providing funding in support of the biometric voter registration system and expertise required to plan and prepare the voter registration system in Somaliland. The UK has contributed £2.18million. The process began on 16 January and is progressing as planned. Over 100,000 people have already been registered. The UK is funding independent monitoring of the process to ensure that it continues to be effectively administered, peaceful and accessible to all.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 19992, what the reason was for the time taken to answer that Question.

Mr David Lidington: I, along with my ministerial colleagues, always aim to provide timely and comprehensive responses to Written Parliamentary Questions. However, there are occasions where this is not possible. In the case of Question 19992, this Question did not fall within the remit of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, leading to a delay in providing the response.

Attorney General

Treason

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Attorney General, what his policy is on use of the charge of treason; and what is his Department's guidance on sentencing those charged and convicted of that offence.

Robert Buckland: In all cases referred for a charging decision, the Crown Prosecution Service uses whichever offence is appropriate to the facts of the case. Modern criminal offences, including terrorism offences, usually offer a better chance of a successful conviction than a prosecution for treason would. Prosecutions for treason are therefore extremely rare and there is no applicable guidance from the Sentencing Council. The maximum sentence for treason is life imprisonment and it would be for the Courts to determine the appropriate sentence in an individual case, having regard to any analogous case law.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Students: Loans

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of current and past students who it expects will be able to pay off their student loans in full.

Joseph Johnson: The student loan system is progressive, with income contingent repayments protecting those on the lowest incomes and loans that have not been fully repaid being cancelled after 30 years. Therefore only a proportion of students are expected to fully repay their loans within this repayment term, although almost all students will repay at least part of their loan.The BIS Student Loan Repayment Model forecasts that around 45% of current full time students will fully repay their student loan. The majority of these students have Plan 2 student loans.It is forecast that around 75% of all past students with student loans since 1998 that are still making repayments will fully repay their student loan. This includes all full time students that finished their courses in the 2015/16 financial year or earlier, the majority of whom have Plan 1 student loans.The above figure for past students does not include those borrowers who have already fully repaid their student loan or had it cancelled. The Student Loan Company publication ‘Student Loans in England: financial year 2014-15’ published in June 2015 shows statistics on the number of borrowers that had fully repaid their loans or had them cancelled up to the end of April 2015. This can be found at the following link:http://www.slc.co.uk/official-statistics/student-loans-debt-and-repayment/england.aspx

Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate: Staff

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answers of 12 January 2016 to Questions 19955 and 19954, (a) how much funding was allocated to and (b) how many full-time equivalent staff were employed by the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate in each year from 2009-10 to 2014-15.

Nick Boles: In 2009-2010 the spend for the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS) was £1,072,608 and the Inspectorate employed 30 staff, including administrative support and call handling staff.In 2010-2011 the spend for EAS was £932,000 with 29 staff employed (as of 1 May 2010).In 2010 the Pay and Work Rights helpline was created. This took over complaint handling and provision of advice and guidance for agencies and agency workers, thus reducing the need for EAS support staff who had previously performed this function. Consequently, in 2011-2012 EAS spend reduced to £637,631 with 23 staff employed.Following a restructure in the Department and streamlining of processes, in 2012-2013 EAS spend was £551,461 with 16 staff employed.In 2013-2014 EAS spend was £532,023 with 12 staff employed (as of the 1st April 2013).In November 2013, as part of the Government’s ongoing commitment to review regularly the enforcement of the national minimum wage, a more targeted enforcement strategy for the recruitment sector was announced, focusing on protecting the most vulnerable, low-paid workers. Resources from EAS moved to HM Revenue and Customs’ National Minimum Wage (NMW) team to form a new HMRC team which mainly focussed on enforcing non-payment of national minimum wage in the recruitment sector. This ensured that the most vulnerable workers were protected and created a level playing field for the vast majority of agencies who play by the rules. Two staff remained in BIS to enforce the recruitment sector regulations and prioritised complaints using a risk-based approach.As part of the Government programme on illegal working and tackling exploitation, a decision was taken in February 2015 to increase EAS resourcing. In June 2015 the number of full time equivalent staff increased to nine. Actual spend will not be available until the end of the financial year.

Apprentices

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2016 to Question 20474, how his Department works with businesses in the (a) construction, planning and the built environment sector subject area and (b) engineering and manufacturing technologies sector subject area to create more apprenticeships.

Nick Boles: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 22 January 2016.The correct answer should have been:

Skills policy is a devolved area so the Devolved Administrations have complete flexibility over how to support businesses in all sectors to ensure there are sufficient skilled workers. In England, our 2020 Vision sets out how we will reach 3 million apprenticeship starts in 2020.We are also introducing the apprenticeships levy to fund the step change in apprenticeship numbers and quality – delivering on our commitment of 3 million starts by 2020. The levy will put apprenticeship funding on a sustainable footing and improve the technical and professional skills of the workforce.We are supporting the growth of apprenticeships in all sectors by working with large and small businesses to begin or expand their programmes, setting new expectations for public sector bodies, and through public procurement. We are providing £85 million to extend the Apprenticeship Grant for Employers (AGE), which supports small businesses to take on apprentices, to the end of the 2016/17 academic year.Employers in both of these specific sectors are heavily involved in designing new apprenticeship standards that fully meet their needs. Employers in the construction sector are involved in developing new apprenticeships standards in over 20 occupations, including site management and construction technician. Those in the advanced manufacturing and engineering sector are involved in developing new apprenticeship standards in over 30 occupations, including aerospace engineer and manufacturing engineer.

Nick Boles: Skills policy is a devolved area so the Devolved Administrations have complete flexibility over how to support businesses in all sectors to ensure there are sufficient skilled workers. In England, our 2020 Vision sets out how we will reach 3 million apprenticeship starts in 2020.We are also introducing the apprenticeships levy to fund the step change in apprenticeship numbers and quality – delivering on our commitment of 3 million starts by 2020. The levy will put apprenticeship funding on a sustainable footing and improve the technical and professional skills of the workforce.We are supporting the growth of apprenticeships in all sectors by working with large and small businesses to begin or expand their programmes, setting new expectations for public sector bodies, and through public procurement. We are providing £85 million to extend the Apprenticeship Grant for Employers (AGE), which supports small businesses to take on apprentices, to the end of the 2016/17 academic year.Employers in both of these specific sectors are heavily involved in designing new apprenticeship standards that fully meet their needs. Employers in the construction sector are involved in developing new apprenticeships standards in over 20 occupations, including site management and construction technician. Those in the advanced manufacturing and engineering sector are involved in developing new apprenticeship standards in over 30 occupations, including aerospace engineer and manufacturing engineer.

Catering: Apprentices

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the number of apprentices working in the curry industry.

Nick Boles: Information on the number of Apprentices working in the curry industry is not available. Apprenticeship starts by Sector Framework and Standard are published as a supplementary table (first link) to a Statistical First Release (second link).https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/477738/apprenticeships-starts-by-sase-framework.xlshttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-held

Catering

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to support the curry industry.

Anna Soubry: We have a range of measures to help support all businesses, including the curry industry. The British Business Bank programmes are supporting £2.4 billion of finance to over 40,000 smaller businesses. Included within this is the Start-Up Loans programme, which has provided over 34,000 loans worth over £187 million. We have saved businesses £10 billion of red tape and we have extended small business rate relief. Employer-led Trailblazers are currently leading the way in the design and delivery of new more rigorous apprenticeship standards to support a range of sectors. Standards relating to several chef roles have already been developed and these are intended to cover specialisms such as Indian cuisine.

Employment Tribunals Service: Fines

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many financial penalties have been imposed on respondent employers under section 16 of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013; and how many such penalties (a) have been paid and (b) remain unpaid.

Nick Boles: Eleven financial penalties have been imposed on employers for aggravated breach of employment law, under section 16 of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013, since its introduction on 6 April 2014.To date, four penalties have been paid and seven remain unpaid. Enforcement action is currently being considered for the outstanding penalties.

Iron and Steel: Wales

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what representations the Government has received from the Welsh Government on the steel industry in the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The Government has had discussions and corresponded with the Welsh Government on a number of occasions over the last five years on issues of importance to the steel industry in Wales. The Minister for Economy, Science and Transport in the Welsh Government attended and made representations at the Steel Summit in Rotherham on 16 October 2015. More recently, I spoke with the Minister for Economy, Science and Transport on 25th November, 15th December and on 14th January about the situation in the steel industry and progress on the “five asks” of the UK steel sector.

Green Investment Bank: Privatisation

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether his Department plans to include an undertaking to retain the staff of the Green Investment Bank as a condition when privatising that body.

Anna Soubry: It is the Department’s intention to sell the Green Investment Bank (GIB) as a going concern along with its business and staff. The GIB’s commercial value lies in its unique green specialism, including its green specialist staff. Any investor spending large sums investing in this bank will be investing precisely in this green specialism and staff.

Green Investment Bank: Fracking

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much funding the Green Investment Bank has invested in fracking projects in the UK.

Anna Soubry: The Green Investment Bank has not invested in any fracking projects.

Business: Compensation

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many businesses were compensated for the indirect costs of the (a) EU Emissions Trading System and (b) carbon price floor; what the average award per eligible business was; and what the total monetary value of such compensation was in (i) 2013-14, (ii) 2014-15 and (iii) 2015-16 to date.

Anna Soubry: Since the compensation schemes for indirect costs of the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) and the Carbon Price Support (CPS) mechanism began, the total number of businesses compensated is 60 and 58 respectively. The table below sets out the amounts of compensation paid from 2013 to 2015 in calendar years. CPS compensation payments began in 2014. The average award per business over that period can be calculated from the table.201320142015 (to 21 January 2016)*TOTAL(£)(£)(£)EU ETS31,707,192.0019,632,228.0018,130,331.0069,469,751.00CPS33,247,349.0044,811,626.0078,058,975.00TOTAL31,707,192.0052,879,577.0062,941,957.00147,528,726.00(* Claimants have until 31 March 2016 to submit Quarter 4 2015 applications).

Green Investment Bank

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the proportion of (a) public and (b) private investment was in each project in which the Green Investment Bank has invested.

Anna Soubry: The information requested can be found in the Transaction Table on the Green Investment Bank website.

Green Investment Bank: Privatisation

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the timescale is for privatisation of the Green Investment Bank; and whether he has made contingency plans to extend that timescale in the event of adverse market conditions.

Anna Soubry: The Government has previously stated that it is seeking to sell a majority stake in the Green Investment Bank (GIB) in the financial year 2016/17.Strong market interest currently exists for the GIB and we expect this timetable to be successfully met. Any extension would be considered nearer to the end of that timetable, should it be required.

Green Investment Bank: Privatisation

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the Government's proposal to sell the Green Investment Bank (GIB) will include provision for the (a) sale of all GIB assets and (b) future of the GIB team.

Anna Soubry: It is the Department’s intention to sell GIB as a going concern. The assets and staff are an inherent part of that company.

Green Investment Bank

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what consultation process took place in respect of the (a) establishment and (b) proposed privatisation of the Green Investment Bank.

Anna Soubry: The answers to the hon. Member’s questions can be found in the policy document entitled “Future of the Green Investment Bank plc” that was published on 18 November on GOV.UK:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/green-investment-bank-the-future

Green Investment Bank: Privatisation

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will place in the Library any external advice given to his Department on green reporting to be undertaken by the privatised Green Investment Bank.

Anna Soubry: The Department has not received any external advice on green reporting to be undertaken by the privatised Green Investment Bank.

Green Investment Bank: Privatisation

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22689, when his Department plans to report to Parliament its detailed plans for the sale of the Green Investment Bank.

Anna Soubry: The Government has introduced provisions to the Enterprise Bill which require a report to be laid before Parliament once a decision to undertake a sale has been made. The report must set out the type of sale, the expected timescale, and the Government’s objectives for the sale.

Arms Trade: Monitoring

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how his Department monitors the use of UK-manufactured arms by those countries to which they are sold.

Anna Soubry: All export licence applications are carefully assessed on a case by case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, taking into account all relevant factors at the time of application. We draw on all available information, including checks using both open and classified sources, reports from non-government organisations and our overseas network, involving Desk and Post in the Foreign Office, when considering licence applications. Foreign Office posts and departments in London monitor conditions in the respective countries – including human rights, regional tensions and the risk of exports being diverted to unintended end use – and advise on developments that might affect licensing policy.

Department for International Development

Nepal: Overseas Aid

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support the Government has given to the Government of Nepal for (a) rebuilding, (b) supply of food and (c) energy supply.

Mr Desmond Swayne: (a) Rebuilding: DFID’s response to the devastating earthquake now stands at £70 million following further commitments made at the International Conference on Nepal’s Reconstruction, making us one of the largest donors. DFID is working closely alongside the Government of Nepal but not directly funding it, rather collaborating with trusted UN and NGO partners to deliver on the humanitarian response both via direct in-kind assistance as well as supporting activities that contribute to an enabling environment for an effective and responsive humanitarian support. We welcome the adoption of the National Reconstruction Authority Bill and formation of the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA). We will support the Government’s reconstruction vision by funding community infrastructure and social protection but not through direct financial aid. We plan to provide technical assistance and advisory support to the NRA.(b) Supply of food: We do not work directly with the Government on this but are supporting local government by providing immediate assistance to the most vulnerable households via in kind distributions (tarpaulins, blankets, mattresses, clothes, shelter insulation, solar lamps and cook stoves). We are funding activities that contribute to an enabling environment for an effective and responsive humanitarian support. This includes funding assessments, coordination and logistics. For example DFID supported the World Food Programme’s (WFP) cash and food assistance operations in the aftermath of the earthquake. This planned to reach 1.4 million people in urgent need of assistance within the first three months of the earthquake, including distribution of rice and high-energy biscuits to prevent starvation and provide supplementary nutrition to the most vulnerable.(c) Energy supply: DFID has committed £5 million to support delivery of renewable energy technologies to earthquake affected communities. The support includes delivery of solar home systems, mobile phone charging stations and repair of mini-hydropower plants that were damaged by the earthquake. The support is being delivered through Nepal’s Alternative Energy Promotion Centre, a semi-autonomous agency under the Ministry of Population and Environment.

East Africa: International Assistance

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what baseline data collection her Department plans to undertake in Somalia and Zimbabwe to measure progress against the Sustainable Development Goals in those countries.

Mr Nick Hurd: In Somalia, one of the costs of protracted conflict has been the loss of national capacity to produce credible statistics. We are working with the UN and others to help rectify this, but it will be some time before proper baselines can be set across all of the SDGs. For now, we expect some progress to be made soon on the first five (covering poverty, hunger, health, education, and gender equality).In Zimbabwe, DFID has supported a number of data collections which will be used to help measure a baseline for SDG delivery. These include the 2014 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), the 2016 Demographic Health Survey (DHS), and other data collections on Agriculture (including the Agriculture and Livestock Survey). DFID will also support a 2016 survey on Poverty, Income, Consumption and Expenditure (PICES).

Developing Countries: Politics and Government

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what procedures her Department has to determine which countries are at risk of becoming fragile states in order that such risks can be managed.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID maintains a list of fragile states based on open-source data from a range of sources including the World Bank, UN and the World Peace Index. We update this list regularly to reflect changes in the data.DFID also makes use of the Cabinet Office’s annual Countries at Risk of Instability report and quarterly Countries at Risk of Instability tracker.

Department for Education

Schools: Leeds

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of school places that will be needed in Leeds in each of the next five years; and how many schools she expects to be built in that city in that period.

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her Department's methodology is for making projections for the number of future school places that an area may require.

Edward Timpson: It is the responsibility of each local authority to balance the supply and demand for primary and secondary school places in their area and to secure a place for every child of statutory school age who wants a school place. Each local authority forecasts future demand for school places, using its own methodology.As part of the annual School Capacity Collection, the Department collects information from all local authorities on school capacity (number of school places) in state-funded primary and secondary schools (except special schools) and local authorities’ own pupil forecasts (5 years ahead for primary places and 7 years ahead for secondary places). The most recent data available relates to the position at May 2014 and can be found on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-capacity-academic-year-2013-to-2014The published data shows that Leeds local authority is anticipating an increase of 6,700 primary pupils and 5,200 secondary pupils between 2014/15 and 2018/19. The department will publish the 2015 School Capacity data collection in the coming months.The Department also publishes local authority basic need scorecards for primary schools, based on data provided by local authorities. The latest scorecards contain the Department’s estimates of the number of additional primary school places needed to meet demand in 2016/17, once existing capacity and plans for new places at 1 May 2014 have been factored in. The Department does not currently publish basic need scorecards for secondary school places. The data and details of the methodology used for the estimates can also be found on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/primary-school-places-local-authority-basic-need-scorecards-2014The Department provides capital funding to local authorities to assist in providing additional school places and monitors the situation regularly to ensure there are sufficient places to meet local need. The funding is allocated on the basis of data provided by local authorities themselves, taking into account their pupil forecasts and existing capacity. Therefore, the allocations reflect the need for school places as identified by the relevant local authority.Leeds will receive £72.9 million from the funding allocations that were announced in February 2015 for the period 2015 to 2018. This brings their total funding allocations for the creation of new school places to £157.5 million between 2011 and 2018. They have an additional £14.6 million through the Targeted Basic Need programme. These allocations will support Leeds to meet the need for school places in their area as identified by the local authority.The free schools programme is also helping to meet demand across the country. Many local authorities are recognising the opportunity that the free schools programme provides and are encouraging new and existing high quality education providers to apply to set up a new school in their area. We encourage all local authorities to do likewise.

Educational Visits

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the number of secondary school pupils who have been unable to participate in a school trip directly related to a statutory aspect of the national curriculum in each of the last three years.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not collect data on the number of pupils who are unable to participate in school trips related to a statutory aspect of the national curriculum. All schools have a duty to teach a balanced and broadly based curriculum which, for maintained schools includes the national curriculum. It is the responsibility of schools to decide how best to teach the curriculum and this includes whether school trips could help enhance pupils’ experience and education and allow pupils to achieve better outcomes.

Education: Equality

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implication for her policies of the conclusion of the Social Market Foundation report, Educational Inequalities in England and Wales, published in January 2016 that, based upon the performance of 11-year-olds, the geographic area in which a child is born has become a more powerful predictive factor in school performance for those born in 2000 compared to those born in 1970.

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the conclusion of the Social Market Foundation report, Educational Inequalities in England and Wales, published in January 2016, that the performance gap between students from the richest and poorest backgrounds has remained persistently large between the mid-1980s and the mid-2000s.

Mr Sam Gyimah: We refer the Right Honourable MP to our response to PQ 22192, submitted to Parliament on Tuesday 19 January, which provides information on our policies to deliver educational excellence everywhere so that every child in England reaches their potential, regardless of background.

Mathematics: Teachers

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2016 to Question 22118, what steps her Department is taking to tackle shortfalls of mathematics teachers in state-funded primary schools; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The number of primary teachers in state funded primary schools in England is the highest on record, and we exceeded our target for primary postgraduate trainee teachers for 2015/16.Excellent mathematics teaching in primary schools is a high priority for this government, and we have taken a number of steps to promote this.We have established a national network of 35 Maths Hubs, backed by £11million of funding to raise standards in mathematics. These centres of excellence are helping schools to improve the quality of their mathematics teaching. Through the Maths Hub network we are making improvements via exchanges with Shanghai, as Hubs develop a deep understanding of the ‘mastery’ approach to mathematics teaching and trial its implementation within schools. We also fund good quality mathematics professional development opportunities for primary teachers through The National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics.In addition, we have encouraged the development of primary mathematics specialist and specialism initial teacher training (ITT) courses, to allow trainee primary teachers to specialise in the subject. Since 2013/14 we have provided an ITT bursary uplift for trainees on these courses. This means that trainees with a B grade at mathematics A level, or equivalent knowledge, receive a higher bursary than those who train on primary general courses. For courses starting in 2016/17 primary mathematics specialists with a 1st class, 2:1 or 2:2 degree will receive a £6,000 bursary, compared to the maximum £3,000 bursary for primary general trainees.

Sugar: Health Education

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to encourage schools and students to use Public Health England's Sugar Smart app.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Department for Education fully supports Public Health England’s current campaign to encourage children to reduce the amount of sugar they eat.The Department’s considerable social media reach has been mobilised in support of the campaign. We have been using numerous channels to promote the Sugar Smart app and other materials related to this year’s Change4Life campaign, including the teacher toolkits distributed directly to 16,500 primary schools in England.

Commonwealth: Curriculum

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to increase schoolchildren's understanding of the Commonwealth by increasing the proportion of the national curriculum dedicated to teaching about the Commonwealth and its relationship with the UK.

Nick Gibb: The national curriculum’s programme of study for citizenship education sets the expectation that pupils are taught about the United Kingdom’s current relations with the Commonwealth. There are also opportunities in the history national curriculum for schools to teach about the Commonwealth.The national curriculum, introduced in September 2014, does not attempt to represent the sum total of everything that should be taught in schools. It prescribes the essential knowledge that pupils should be taught, leaving schools greater flexibility to teach over and above what the national curriculum requires, and to decide how to teach the essential content that is prescribed.

Children: Hyperactivity

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support the academic and socio-emotional needs of children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Edward Timpson: This Government is committed to making sure that every child reaches their full potential. Schools and local authorities should work with specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in order to support children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This collaborative approach aims to ensure the best possible outcome for children and young people with ADHD. Additionally, the Children and Young People's project for the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme aims to increase the choice and availability of evidence based treatments. This includes support therapies such as parent training or education, which is recommended in the NICE guidelines as a first line treatment for ADHD in early years and school aged children.In addition, the 0-25 years Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice[1] emphasises the importance of schools identifying the underlying causes of behaviour issues, whether or not these require special educational provision. Early identification of ADHD means that steps can be taken to define the needs of children and young people and put in place appropriate intervention to support them.The importance of early assessment of need is also emphasised in other statutory guidance, including statutory guidance on exclusion,[2] with headteachers being expected to consider the use of multi-agency assessment for pupils who demonstrate persistent disruptive behaviour.[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25[2]https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/269681/Exclusion_from_maintained_schools__academies_and_pupil_referral_units.pdf

Teachers: Training

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to (a) include understanding of the signs for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in teacher training and (b) encourage earlier identification, assessment and positive intervention in relation to that disorder.

Edward Timpson: All initial teacher training (ITT) programmes must ensurethat trainees can meet the Teachers’ Standards[1] at the appropriate level.This requires trainees to have a clear understanding of the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs (SEN). The standards also require teachers to be able to adapt their teaching to the needs of all pupils, and to have an understanding of the factors that can inhibit learning and how to overcome such barriers. No trainee can be recommended for qualified teacher status (QTS) until they have satisfied the standards in full.Schools are responsible for determining how best their staff can meet the needs of children with SEN and disabilities within their approaches to school improvement, professional development, and performance.Following Sir Andrew Carter’s review of the quality of ITT last year, the Government commissioned an independent working group to develop a framework of core ITT content. The group is made up of expert representatives from the sector, including SEN specialists. This will support those who deliver ITT, as well as applicants and trainees, to have a better understanding of the essential elements of good ITT core content, based on the existing Teachers’ Standards. We have also asked the behaviour expert Tom Bennett to develop core content for ITT on effective behaviour management. Both groups are expected to report to Ministers in spring 2016.The 0-25 years Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice, which came into force in September 2014, and was updated in May 2015, emphasises the importance of schools identifying the underlying causes of behaviour issues, whether or not these require special educational provision. The Code details principles which support a set of aims, including the early identification of children and young people’s needs and early intervention to support them. Schools can determine when to assess; this decision is based on knowledge of their pupils, working closely with other agencies, and working with pupils’ families.The importance of early assessment is also emphasised in other statutory guidance, including guidance on exclusion, with headteachers being expected to consider the use of multi-agency assessment for pupils who demonstrate persistent disruptive behaviour.[1] Published on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teachers-standards

Pupils: Disadvantaged

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will assess the potential merits of enabling or compelling local authorities to use housing and council tax benefit data to (a) identify children who are eligible for free school meals and the pupil premium and (b) enable parents and guardians of those children to claim free school meals for their children.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Holding answer received on 25 January 2016



We want to ensure that as many children as possible who are eligible for free school meals (FSM) receive them. We have made it as simple as possible for schools and local authorities to check eligibility. We are aware that a number of local authorities have been successful in using housing benefit and council tax support claim data to identify children who may be eligible for, but are not currently claiming, FSM.We are looking in more detail at the approaches that schools and local authorities have taken so far and we will set out the Government’s position on this issue shortly.

Schools: Building Regulations

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether it is a requirement for schools built through the Priority School Buildings programme to be tested for compliance with acoustic regulations before they open.

Edward Timpson: Building Bulletin 93 (BB93), published by the Department for Education, sets out the minimum performance standards for the acoustics of school buildings and the normal means of demonstrating compliance with the Building Regulations: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bb93-acoustic-design-of-schools-performance-standardsThe Priority School Building Programme requires the contractors undertaking the design and build of schools to demonstrate compliance with these standards prior to the building being accepted as complete. Compliance is demonstrated through testing.In parallel, the Building Control function within local authorities also requires evidence that the acoustic regulations have been met prior to them issuing approval for the buildings to become operational.

Academies

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of (a) secondary and (b) primary schools are academies.

Edward Timpson: As of January 2016, 18% of primary schools and 65% of secondary schools are academies, including free schools, studio schools or Universal Technical Colleges.

Schools: Solihull

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department has taken to ensure that demand for school places in Solihull is met.

Edward Timpson: Local authorities are responsible for planning and securing sufficient school places in their area, and supporting them in doing so is one of this Government’s top priorities. That is why this Government is investing £23 billion in school buildings to create 600,000 new school places, open 500 new free schools and address essential maintenance needs. Basic need funding is allocated to local authorities to help them to create new school places. Solihull has been allocated £17 million of basic need funding for the period 2015-18. Solihull also received £4 million between 2011 and 2015. Information on basic need allocations can be found online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/basic-need-allocations-2015-to-2018

Children: Day Care

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the affordability of childcare in (a) Lambeth, (b) Southwark and (c) London.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Holding answer received on 25 January 2016



The Government uses a range of information to consider the affordability of childcare, including our Childcare and Early Years Survey of Parents’[1]; independent surveys, such as the Family and Childcare Trust Annual Childcare Cost Surveys[2]; and the recent House of Lords Select Committee’s report on affordable childcare, to which we responded on 17 December, 2015[3].We are committed to supporting hardworking parents with the costs of childcare, and to making childcare more affordable. That is why we will be investing an extra £1billion per annum by 2019-20 to help hardworking families with the cost of childcare.We are already funding 15 hours a week of free early education for all three- and four-year-olds and for disadvantaged two-year-olds. This saves families around £2,500 per child per year. Through our Childcare Bill we are making plans to fund and deliver an additional 15 hours of free childcare for the working parents of three- and four-year olds from September 2017 (with early implementation in some areas from September 2016). This is worth around another £2,500 per child per year. We also continue to invest in the Early Years Pupil Premium.We are introducing Tax-Free Childcare from early 2017, under which around 2 million families could benefit by up to £2,000 per child per year or £4,000 per child per year if a child is disabled.For working parents on low and middle incomes, working tax credit pays up to 70% of their childcare costs and this will increase to 85% under Universal Credit from April 2016. This support will be available, for the first time, to those working fewer than 16 hours per week.[1] www.gov.uk/government/statistics/childcare-and-early-years-survey-of-parents-2012-to-2013[2] www.familyandchildcaretrust.org/childcare-cost-survey-2015[3] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/affordable-childcare-response-to-the-select-committee-report

GCE A-level: Hearing Impairment

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many deaf students achieved three A* to A grades or better in their A-levels in 2015.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to publish A-Level data for each type of special educational need.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average point score for deaf A-level students was in 2015 was.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many deaf students had not achieved a level 2 qualification in English by the age of 19 in 2015.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to improve collection of data on the outcomes achieved by children who have a disability but not a special educational need.

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data her Department publishes on the education achievements of children and young people with special educational needs, for each type of special educational need.

Edward Timpson: Information regarding the attainment of students with special educational needs (SEN) in England is broken down by type of SEN and published in the “Phonics screening check and key stage 1 assessment: England 2015”[1], “National curriculum assessments at key stage 2: 2015”[2] and “GCSE and equivalent results in England: 2015”[3] statistical first releases.A wider summary of available SEN information is provided in “Special educational needs - an analysis and summary of data sources”[4]Information on the average points score of students with a hearing impairment or the number that achieve three A* to A grades or better at A level is not held by the Department. The Department also does not hold information on the number of students with a hearing impairment who have not achieved a level 2 qualification in English by the age of 19.Currently, there are no plans for the Department to publish A-level data split by type of special educational need or to collect additional data on the outcomes achieved by students who have a disability but not an identified special educational need, although this is reviewed every year as part of the collection process.[1] Phonics and KS1 assessments for 2014/15: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/phonics-screening-check-and-key-stage-1-assessments-england-2015[2] KS2 for 2014/15: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-curriculum-assessments-at-key-stage-2-2015-revised[3] KS4 for 2014/15: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/revised-gcse-and-equivalent-results-in-england-2014-to-2015[4] https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/472575/Special_educational_needs-_an_analysis_and_summary_of_data_sources.pdf

High Arcal School

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will meet representatives of High Arcal Academy in Dudley to discuss its Condition Improvement Fund bid for a new sports hall.

Edward Timpson: Applications to the Condition Improvement Fund closed on 16 December 2015 and we can confirm that The High Arcal School’s application for a new sports hall has been received. Applications are now being assessed against our published criteria to ensure that those with the greatest need receive funding. In the interests of fairness to all applicants in what is a competitive process, my noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools will be unable to meet school representatives during assessment.We expect to notify all schools of their bid outcomes by the end of March and my noble Friend will ensure that The High Arcal School is contacted.

Teachers: Yorkshire and the Humber

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) primary, (b) secondary and (c) college teachers there were in (i) Leeds, (ii) Leeds city region and (iii) Yorkshire in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: The full-time equivalent number of regular teachers in service in state funded nursery/primary and secondary schools in Leeds local authority, Yorkshire and The Humber and England in November 2010 to 2014 is provided in the table below.Leeds local authorityYorkshire and The HumberEnglandPrimary[1]SecondaryPrimary1SecondaryPrimary1SecondaryNovember20143,0902,91021,49020,660215,520213,43020132,9402,91020,85020,540209,460214,22020122,8702,96020,74021,290204,730215,72020112,9102,90019,72020,700199,490215,16020102,8803,02019,84021,600196,390219,030Source: School Workforce CensusFigures for Leeds City Region are not available as data for Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEP) are not routinely produced. Figures for the numbers of college teachers are not collected by the Department for Education.[1] Includes local authority maintained nursery.

Free School Meals: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many school pupils were eligible for free school meals in each London borough in December 2015.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The department does not hold data for the number of pupils eligible for free school meals specifically in December 2015. The latest published figures, drawn from the January 2015 school census and broken down by local authority, are available in tables 8a, 8b and 8c of the ‘Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2015’ statistics.[1][1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2015 - refer to the local authority tables.

Offensive Weapons: Educational Institutions

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, on how many occasions (a) knives, (b) guns and (c) other offensive weapons were found in schools and colleges in each London borough in (i) 2010 and (ii) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not hold information on the number of occasions knives, guns or other offensive weapons have been found in schools and colleges.

Ministry of Justice

Judges: Training

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will ensure that family court judges receive training on the new offence of coercive and controlling behaviour created by the Serious Crime Act 2015.

Caroline Dinenage: Under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, responsibility for judicial training rests with the Lord Chief Justice and this is exercised through the Judicial College. Accordingly, the independence of the judiciary means that Government Ministers do not intervene with regard to the content of judicial training.The Judicial College has advised me that the new offence will be incorporated into existing training programmes for the family jurisdiction, particularly the modules that include domestic abuse.

Domestic Violence

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that Practice Direction 12J: Child Arrangement and Contact Orders: Domestic Violence and Harm is properly implemented in each case involving domestic abuse seen in the family courts.

Caroline Dinenage: The family courts take the issue of domestic violence extremely seriously. The Child Arrangement Programme and Practice Direction 12J set out a strong and clear framework for use where domestic violence is alleged. All judges receive specific training on this framework. The judge, on the basis of the evidence, will determine how the framework will be applied in a particular case and in particular, must be satisfied that any contact ordered with a parent who has perpetrated violence or abuse is safe and in the best interests of the child.

Prisoner Escapes

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners on day release have absconded in the last 12 months.

Andrew Selous: The information requested could not be obtained in the time available. I will write to you in due course.

Medway Secure Training Centre

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many members of staff of Medway Secure Training College have (a) been suspended, (b) received an official warning and (c) been dismissed since 30 December 2015.

Andrew Selous: Since 30th December 2015, ten members of staff have been suspended, five have received an official warning and five have been dismissed.

Bill of Rights: Public Consultation

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the (a) timing of the consultation on the proposed Bill of Rights and associated measures and (b) effect of the purdah of the Scottish Government and dissolution of the Scottish Parliament on that timing.

Dominic Raab: We are committed to consulting fully on our proposals prior to the introduction of any legislation and will announce further details in due course.We will adhere to any guidance published by the Cabinet Office in respect of the pre-election periods. We have and will continue to seek to work with the devolved administrations to deliver a modernised and reformed human rights framework for all of the United Kingdom.

Prisoner Escapes

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many offences were committed by (a) escaped or (b) absconded prisoners in each year since 2010; and what those offences were.

Andrew Selous: The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Sentencing: Appeals

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what process there is for updating victims on the progress of a prisoner's appeal.

Mike Penning: I refer the honourable member to the answer given to PQ 19160 on 15 December 2015.

Oakwood Prison: Civil Disorder

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 19 January 2016 to Question 22284, how many members of (a) the National Tactical Response Group and (b) Tornado Teams have been injured during a call out at HM Prison Oakwood in each of the last three years.

Andrew Selous: There have been zero injuries to members of the National Tactical Response Group and Tornado Teams during a callout at HM Prison Oakwood in each of the last three years.

Prison Service: Dismissal

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison staff from which prisons were dismissed for conducting inappropriate relationships with prisoners in (a) 2010, (b) 2013, (c) 2014 and (d) 2015.

Andrew Selous: Information on the number of cases of staff dismissed for having had an inappropriate relationship with a prisoner/ ex-prisoner are set out in the table below. Information on conduct and discipline cases is published in the Ministry of Justice Diversity Report on a financial year basis and to maintain consistency with these figures the table is presented in the same way.Table: Number of staff dismissed for having had an inappropriate relationship with a prisoner/ ex-prisoner, 2009/10 to 2014/15YearNumber of Cases2009/10102010/11202011/12102012/13102013/14102014/1510No individual establishment had more than 5 cases in each year so only total numbers are provided in the table.All figures are rounded to the nearest 10, with numbers ending in5 rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. As with all HR databases, extracts are taken at a fixed point in time, to ensure consistency of reporting. However the database itself is dynamic, and where updates to the database are made late, subsequent to the taking of the extract, these updates will not be reflected in figures produced by the extract. For this reason, HR data are unlikely to be precisely accurate, and to present unrounded figures would be to overstate the accuracy of the figures. Rounding to 10 accurately depicts the level of certainty that is held with these figures.~ denotes suppressed values of 5 or fewer. Low numbers are suppressed, in conjunction with the rounding policy to prevent disclosure in accordance with the Data Protection Act, 1998.

Prisons: Discipline

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the five items most commonly recorded by the Incident Report System are; and how many of each such item were recorded in the last year for which figures are available.

Andrew Selous: The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Prisoners: Police Custody

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times police cells were used to hold prisoners overnight in each month in 2014 and 2015.

Andrew Selous: There are occasions, for logistical reasons, where prisoners may be temporarily held overnight in police cells. Police cells are used not due to a lack of space across the prison estate but because it is not always possible to transfer prisoners from courts to prisons in the time available at the end of court sittings.The number of prisoners held overnight in a police cell has been cut from a peak of over 50,000 in financial year 2007-08.We will always have enough prison places for those sent to us by the courts and will aim to deal with the prison population in a way that gives taxpayers the best possible value for money. Operation Safeguard, have not been used since 22 September 2008 and no police cells under Operation Safeguard have been on stand-by since the end of October 2008. The following table shows the total number of prisoners who were temporarily held overnight in police cells in England and Wales in each month in 2014-15. The totals include adults, young adults (18 to 20-year-olds) and young people (15 to 17-year-olds).   Number of uses of police cells20142015January16889February372112March17574April64107May4647June112113July274180August11663September62137October96174November149195December111151Total17451442

Prisoner Escapes

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners escaped from prison vans in each year since 2010; how many such prisoners remain on the run; of what offences each such prisoner was convicted; and what length of custodial sentence each such prisoner was given.

Dominic Raab: We are committed to consulting fully on our proposals prior to the introduction of any legislation and will announce further details in due course.We will adhere to any guidance published by the Cabinet Office in respect of the pre-election periods. We have and will continue to seek to work with the devolved administrations to deliver a modernised and reformed human rights framework for all of the United Kingdom.

Armed Forces: Civil Proceedings

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will discuss with the Secretary of State for Defence ways by which vexatious claims against soldiers who have served on operations overseas can be minimised; and if he will make a statement.

Dominic Raab: As the Prime Minister announced last Friday we cannot have our armed forces being hounded by ambulance chasing lawyers pursuing spurious claims. I will be chairing a working group with the Minister for Armed forces that will look at every aspect of this issue, including conditional fee arrangements, legal aid rules and disciplinary sanctions against lawyers who abuse the system, to prevent malicious litigation being brought against our service personnel.

Human Rights Act 1998: Scotland

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans the Government has to seek legislative consent from the Scottish Parliament for the proposed repeal of the Human Rights Act 1998.

Dominic Raab: This Government was elected with a clear mandate to replace the Human Rights Act with a Bill of Rights. We will bring forward proposals for consultation in due course, and will fully engage with the Devolved Administrations.It would be premature to comment on the application of the Sewell Convention until the package of legislation is settled.

Employment Tribunals Service: Fees and Charges

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Government plans to publish the findings of its review of employment tribunal fees.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Following public consultation, the government introduced fees in Employment Tribunals as a way of reducing the burden on the taxpayer and to encourage parties to seek alternative ways of resolving their disputes.On 11 June we announced the start of the post-implementation review of the introduction of fees in the Employment Tribunals.The review will report in due course.

Human Rights Act 1998: Scotland

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans the Government has to seek legislative consent from the Scottish Parliament for the proposed repeal of the Human Rights Act 1998.

Dominic Raab: This Government was elected with a clear mandate to replace the Human Rights Act with a Bill of Rights. We will bring forward proposals for consultation in due course, and will fully engage with the Devolved Administrations.It would be premature to comment on the application of the Sewell Convention until the package of legislation is settled.

Ministry of Defence

Royal Regiment of Scotland: Reserve Forces

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many personnel from (a) 6 SCOTS and (b) 7 SCOTS did not attend the minimum number of training days in each year since 2012.

Mr Julian Brazier: There is no minimum number of training days for Army Reservists.

Army: Reserve Forces

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to improve (a) training for army reservists and (b) social cohesiveness between reservists and full-time soldiers.

Mr Julian Brazier: As a result of constant reviews conducted by the Army to improve and modernise the delivery of training, opportunities for Army Reservists have never been better.Initial training for the Army Reserve was restructured last year. This has streamlined progression through the training programme, as Reservists enjoy greater flexibility with how they complete the modules in Phase 1.Phase 2 sees Reservists receive instruction at the same specialist training schools as their regular counterparts, equipping them with the professional skills required to fully integrate with the Regular Army.The Army currently offers 22 bespoke overseas training exercises for Reservists, which Reserve units lead with their paired Regular units integrated to improve interoperability and social cohesion. In addition, Reservists routinely train alongside their Regular counterparts from their paired and other units, in complex exercises at home and overseas, using the same equipment.Social cohesion between Reservists and Regular soldiers is further fostered though the growth of sports, social and Regimental events facilitated by the pairing mechanism, whereby each reserve unit is paired with a Regular Unit.

Marines: Defence Equipment and Uniforms

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it is his Department's policy that Royal Marines are required to contribute towards the cost of their uniform or equipment.

Mark Lancaster: On joining and for deployments, Royal Marines are issued with the uniform and equipment required for their role and specific tasking.Officers, unlike Other Ranks, are required to pay for the maintenance of their uniforms for which Income Tax relief is provided automatically via salary.

Iraq: Military Intervention

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the number of fraudulent compensation claims against Armed Forces personnel in Iraq.

Penny Mordaunt: The Government is committed to action to bear down on unmeritorious litigation of all kinds against the Armed Forces, and will be announcing its proposed course of action in due course. Accusations must be investigated, but where they are found to be fraudulent, or where relevant information is withheld, we will robustly defend the reputation of the Armed Forces and the interests of the taxpayer. We welcome the decision of the Solicitors Regulation Authority to refer one firm of solicitors heavily involved in bringing claims from Iraq to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.

Lebanon: Military Aid

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the effect equipment gifted to the Lebanese armed forces between 2012 and 2015 on that country's ability to secure its border with Syria against (a) the spread of the Syrian conflict, (b) the movement of Hezbollah fighters supporting the Assad Regime and (c) the movement of Daesh fighters.

Penny Mordaunt: The UK is committed to the security of Lebanon, including helping the Lebanese state secure its borders. From 2012-2015 we used over £30 million to help the Lebanese army raise and equip three Land Border Regiments (LBRs) deployed along the border with Syria. The project provides the LBRs with border towers, non-lethal equipment, mentoring and training. This has had a direct effect in mitigating contagion from the war in Syria. The border regiments successfully repel frequent attacks by Daesh on Lebanese territory. 75% of the Syria-Lebanon border will be under state control by March 2016, and the rest will be further secured with the establishment of a fourth LBR in financial year 2016-17.

Veterans: North West

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans in (a) Pendle, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West have been helped by Veterans UK since 2010.

Mark Lancaster: I have taken help by Veterans UK to mean assistance provided by the Veterans UK Welfare Service. The Veterans Welfare Service provides Veterans and their families' with free and confidential advice on a wide range of issues.Regrettably, the information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.However, the total number of visits to Veterans from the Veterans UK Welfare Service since 01 January 2010 to 20 January 2016 in the Pendle, Lancashire and North West district, are set out below.District*Number of VisitsPendle100Lancashire1,870North West(1)7,240(1) This figure incorporates the Pendle and Lancashire districts.*In line with departmental policy, values have been rounded to the nearest 5.

Veterans UK: North West

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much Veterans UK has spent on providing support to veterans in (a) Pendle, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West since 2010.

Mark Lancaster: Your question concerning how much Veterans UK has spent on providing support to Veterans has been interpreted to mean assistance provided by the Veterans UK Welfare Service.This information is not held in the format requested.

Navy: Ports

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to ensure that harbours can accommodate any new vessels built for use by the Royal Navy.

Mr Philip Dunne: It is recognised that harbours in the UK and around the world vary in size, and that not all are able to accommodate all classes of ships due to constraints such as navigation channels, water depth, tidal movements, tug and pilotage arrangements, and berthing facilities. There are, however, a sufficient number of harbours and ports both at home and overseas that our ships can access, or could anchor in the vicinity of, to receive the necessary support.

Armed Forces: Females

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what training his Department provides for women to enable them to serve in combat on the front line.

Penny Mordaunt: Women already serve in a variety of roles with front line units including pilots, submariners, medics, fire support team commanders, military intelligence operators, counter improvised explosive device operators and dog handlers. They have made and continue to make a valuable contribution to recent and current operations including Afghanistan.Women are currently excluded from serving in Ground Close Combat roles; the Infantry and Royal Armoured Corps, the Royal Marines and the Royal Air Force Regiment. The Prime Minister stated on 20 December 2015 that he wants to see all roles in the Armed Forces opened up to women in 2016 and further physiological research currently under way will inform a final decision in mid-2016.

Libya: Military Aid

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assistance the Government has given to the Libyan government for training Libyan army personnel.

Penny Mordaunt: We welcome the recent progress towards the formation of a Government of National Accord in Libya. We are considering, with partner nations, how we can best support a Libyan Government once it is established, including capacity building and security sector reform.We are also training two Libyan Officer Cadets who are due to commission from Sandhurst later this year after successfully completing their training programme in the UK which started in April 2014.

Rolls-Royce Marine Power Operations

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent representations he has received in favour of Government involvement in any part of the running of departments or divisions of Rolls Royce connected to that company's production of the Nuclear Reactor Component of the Successor Programme.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence has received no such representations.

Rolls-Royce Marine Power Operations

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of whether Rolls Royce will complete the Nuclear Reactor Component of the Successor Programme on schedule; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 20 January 2016 to Question 22344.



Nuclear Submarines
(Word Document, 14.38 KB)

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, in how many countries UK Reapers are currently operational.

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether UK Reapers have been deployed to Libya.

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether any personnel from UK Reaper Squadrons have been deployed to (a) Libya, (b) Kenya and (c) Somalia in the last three years.

Penny Mordaunt: UK Reapers are currently operational in Iraq and Syria. No UK Reapers have been deployed to Libya, and no personnel from UK Reaper Squadrons have been deployed to Libya, Kenya or Somalia in the last three years.

Alexander Blackman

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on whether there has been an application to the Criminal Cases Review Commission in respect of the case of Sergeant Blackman.

Mark Lancaster: The Department was notified by Sergeant Blackman's legal team that an application to the Criminal Cases Review Commission was submitted in late 2015. The Department will continue to co-operate fully with Sergeant Blackman's lawyers and will respond expeditiously to any enquiries the Commission may raise with it. This has included the release of the classified documents referred to during the Westminster Hall debate on 16 September 2015.

France: Military Alliances

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions his Department held with its French counterpart on the potential effect on Anglo-French defence contracts of a British exit from the EU.

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what analysis his Department has commissioned of the potential effect of a British withdrawal from the EU on Anglo-French defence projects.

Mr Julian Brazier: None.

Military Aircraft: Lasers

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many military pilots have sought medical assistance and been stood down after a laser pen attack.

Mark Lancaster: Data on military aircrew seeking medical assistance or being stood down from flying following a laser pen incident is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Military Aircraft: Lasers

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many incidents  of laser pen attacks on military aircraft were recorded in (a) the UK and (b) overseas in the last five years.

Mark Lancaster: There have been some 470 laser related Defence Air Safety Occurrence Reports received in the last five years involving UK military aircraft. Some 250 occurred in the UK and 220 overseas. It is not possible to determine whether laser pens were responsible for each incident.

Air Force: South China Sea

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether any aircraft of the Royal Air Force have exercised or sought to exercise freedom of navigation or passage rights over disputed areas of the South China Sea claimed by the government of the People's Republic of China since 2010.

Penny Mordaunt: The RAF regularly flies in the vicinity of the South China Sea on transit to countries such as Brunei and Australia. Information on the exact route of every such flight area since 2010 is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The UK strongly asserts its right, and supports that of all States, to exercise Freedom of Navigation in accordance with the International Rules Based System.

Ministry of Defence: Iron and Steel

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of steel used in projects and in equipment procured by his Department in each of the last six years was manufactured in the UK.

Mr Philip Dunne: Steel has been sourced by our contractors from a range of UK and international suppliers, reflecting the need to ensure a competitive price and delivery at the required time and quality, and UK suppliers have made a significant contribution to this.Supply chains are complex and the Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not hold a complete, centralised record of steel procurement for projects and equipment, either in terms of quantity or country of origin, over the past six years. But for the largest defence procurement project during this period, construction of the two Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers, some 77,000 tonnes out of a total of 82,000 tonnes of steel used was manufactured in the UK.Our new Government guidelines, which have been implemented in the MOD, will help UK steel suppliers to compete effectively for future defence projects.

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Prime Minister of 20 January 2016, Official Report, column 1411, if he will set out the specific activities being undertaken by British military personnel in providing training, advice and help to the Saudi Arabian military.

Penny Mordaunt: We have provided education and training courses to Saudi Arabian Military personnel under existing government-to-government arrangements including the Managing Defence in a Wider Security Context, the Strategic Leadership Programmes, and Initial Officer training courses. These courses expose Saudi Military personnel to UK policy, and promote concepts of accountability, compliance with International Humanitarian Law and transparency. They are important in building skills which enable Saudi Arabia to deal appropriately with their own security problems, thereby contributing to regional security

Members: Correspondence

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects to reply to the letters to him from the hon. Member for Tewkesbury dated 20 July 2015 and 21 October 2015 on the treatment of veterans and the terms of the Military Covenant.

Michael Fallon: The case that the hon. Member refers to is complicated and sensitive and is still being reviewed by officials. I will write to him as soon as this review concludes.

Department for Work and Pensions

Department for Work and Pensions: Atos Healthcare

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the value is of the personal independence payment assessment contract with ATOS; what the main key performance indicators (KPIs) are under that contract; and what the (a) financial and (b) other penalties are for failure to meet KPIs.

Justin Tomlinson: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 19 January 2016.The correct answer should have been:

The Department has two Personal Independence Payment (PIP) contracts with Atos, each covering a geographical area. North of England & Scotland (Lot 1) has a value of £206,703,507. London & South of England (Lot 3) has a value of £183,894,556.There are a number of Service Levels (Key Performance Indicators are not used in PIP contracts) which Atos are required to deliver to meet the Department’s service requirements. These are detailed in the attached Annex 1. In addition, a number of interim Service Levels have been introduced to address specific performance targets.In the event Atos fail to achieve a key service level, contracts provide for Service Credits to be applied. Service Credits are a contractual remedy applied to Atos to recognise the loss of service received and to ensure any performance issues are rectified quickly.



Annex 1
(Word Document, 27.98 KB)

Justin Tomlinson: The Department has two Personal Independence Payment (PIP) contracts with Atos, each covering a geographical area. North of England & Scotland (Lot 1) has a value of £206,703,507. London & South of England (Lot 3) has a value of £183,894,556.There are a number of Service Levels (Key Performance Indicators are not used in PIP contracts) which Atos are required to deliver to meet the Department’s service requirements. These are detailed in the attached Annex 1. In addition, a number of interim Service Levels have been introduced to address specific performance targets.In the event Atos fail to achieve a key service level, contracts provide for Service Credits to be applied. Service Credits are a contractual remedy applied to Atos to recognise the loss of service received and to ensure any performance issues are rectified quickly.



Annex 1
(Word Document, 27.98 KB)

Universal Credit: Domestic Violence

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2016 to Question 21059, on universal credit: domestic violence, for what reasons that information is not currently available; and whether his Department plans to collect such information in the future.

Priti Patel: The Department published a strategy for releasing official statistics on Universal Credit. As outlined in the strategy, officials are currently quality assuring a range of data for Universal Credit. It is for this reason that the information requested is not currently available.During 2016 we will be increasing the range of statistics on Universal Credit, which will be published in accordance with the relevant protocols in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Social Security Benefits: Disability

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people who were in receipt of disability benefits re-joined the workforce in  (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) 2015.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not available. Disability benefits are comprised of Attendance Allowance (AA), Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Personal Independence Payment (PIP). These benefits are all non-means-tested, cash benefits available to disabled people to provide a contribution towards extra costs and can be paid regardless of the employment status of the claimant. Because of this, the employment status is not collected during the claims process or at any other point during the lifetime of a claim.

Jobcentre Plus: Food Banks

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he had with foodbank providers on the planned introduction of Jobcentre staff in foodbanks.

Priti Patel: Jobcentre Work Coaches undertake outreach work every day in local communities, and have recently been helping people with back-to-work support and advice in Manchester, where a food bank sits alongside other support services.The Department is in the early stages of testing the outreach activity, and will reflect on the findings.Where Jobcentre Plus is invited to work in partnership with a food bank provider, and where there is a local need, Jobcentre Plus District Managers will be able to apply the best practices identified.

Members: Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he intends to answer the letter to him dated 14 December 2015 with regard to Ms A Sharif.

Justin Tomlinson: The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the member of Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), replied on 24 January 2015.

Members: Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he intends to answer the letter to him dated 9 December 2015 with regard to Mr S Faulkner.

Justin Tomlinson: The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the member of Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), replied on 20 January 2015..

Department for Work and Pensions: Dismissal

Christian Matheson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employees who were dismissed from employment by his Department or its executive agencies since 2010 were on long-term sickness absence at the time of their dismissal; and how many such employees had been diagnosed with a condition considered (a) incurable, and (b) terminal.

Justin Tomlinson: DWP has succeeded in reducing sickness absence from an annual average of 8.4 days per employee in December 2010 to 6.2 days per employee currently.DWP’s Attendance Management policy is supportive of our people and we are committed to helping them maintain good health. We will support employees during periods of sickness absence as long as there is a realistic prospect they will return to work. However, where this is not the case, we need to take prompt action to manage the situation.The following table provides a summary of number of employees dismissed while on long-term sickness absence.YearHeadcount at end of yearDismissals on Long Term Sick2010112,1354502011101,3314392012106,487333201399,343423201490,388453201584,429421DWP does not record whether an employee’s condition is diagnosed as incurable or terminal, so cannot provide this information.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when his Department expects to notify all claimants expected to be directly affected by the change to universal credit taking effect from April 2016.

Priti Patel: We will notify all claimants who we expect to be directly affected by the change and offer tailored support depending on the claimant’s individual circumstances.

Universal Credit: Applications

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many universal credit applications in 2015 were initially rejected as the result of a computer system error and subsequently accepted.

Priti Patel: No Universal Credit applications were rejected because of a computer system error.

Pensioners: Income

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the average change in income for an individual as of the result of the delay in qualifying for pension credit resulting from the introduction of the revised state pension age timetable in the Pensions Act 2011.

Justin Tomlinson: Holding answer received on 25 January 2016



Pension Credit was designed to provide income related support for people without sufficient provision for their retirement and as such the qualifying age for both men and women has been linked to women’s State Pension age since its introduction.The information requested is not available. Any change in an individual’s income would be dependent on their specific circumstances.

Medical Treatments Abroad: Europe

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many reimbursement claims his Department has received from UK citizens for health treatment in other European countries for each of the last five years.

Justin Tomlinson: The number of reimbursement claims the DWP Overseas Healthcare Team received from UK citizens for health treatment in EEA Member states is as follows:2011 - 246162012 - 244472013 - 302282014 - 250342015 – 15793

Medical Treatments Abroad: France

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the UK's arrangements with French authorities for processing reimbursement claims from UK citizens for state-funded health treatment received in France.

Justin Tomlinson: European Union Regulations on the coordination of social security systems include provisions on how citizens may obtain healthcare in other EEA states. These are longstanding legislative arrangements which include the use of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), as well as how the resulting bills are settled between states. The European Commission and the member states are jointly responsible for assessing the effectiveness of the regulations on an on-going basis and where necessary the Commission will recommend any proposed changes for consideration and agreement with the member states.

Medical Treatments Abroad: Europe

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what arrangements are in place to enable UK citizens to submit reimbursement claims under the European Health Insurance Card regulations; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of those arrangements.

Justin Tomlinson: In the UK, the NHS Choices website provides comprehensive information on the arrangements that are in place to enable UK citizens to submit reimbursement claims under the EU regulations. Such claims are dealt with by a dedicated team in the Department for Work and Pensions – the DWP Overseas Healthcare Team. Contact details for the DWP Overseas Healthcare Team are provided on the NHS Choices website and may also be found on the EHIC itself.The reimbursement processes to which all member states adhere have been in place for many years and work in much the same way across Europe. The European Commission and the member states are jointly responsible for assessing the effectiveness of the regulations on an on-going basis and where necessary the Commission will recommend any proposed changes for consideration and agreement with the member states.

Medical Treatments Abroad: Europe

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidelines are in place on the amount of time that should be taken to process reimbursement claims from UK citizens for health treatment in other European countries; and what data his Department holds on the average amount of time taken to process such claims.

Justin Tomlinson: The EU regulations do not provide set timescales for the processing of reimbursement claims. The DWP Overseas Healthcare Team work proactively with colleagues in the other EEA states to progress reimbursement claims on behalf of UK citizens. When all the appropriate information is received from the relevant EEA state, such claims are normally cleared for reimbursement within 10 days.

Universal Credit: Young People

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of workless 18 to 21-year olds who will be enrolled on universal credit in (a) 2016-17, (b) 2017-18, (c) 2018-19 and (d) 2019-20.

Priti Patel: The information requested is not available. The number of people on benefits is driven by a range of factors, and because of this the programme measures progress by the successful achievement of its delivery plan rather than numbers of claimants.

Schools: Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress he has made with providing Jobcentre Plus advisor support in schools.

Priti Patel: Jobcentre Plus support for schools was launched on 14 January in Birmingham. The remaining nine pathfinders will be launched in this academic year before national rollout by March 2017.

Cold Weather Payments

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 18 January 2016 to Question 22115, why information on the number and value of cold weather payments has not been (a) collected and (b) made available for each constituency in each year since their introduction.

Justin Tomlinson: We have provided the data at constituency level in the Social Fund Annual Report since 2011/12. Prior to this the information was only collected, and then published annually, at Met Office Weather Station level. To go back and recalculate the figures based on each constituency since the scheme began could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Proof of Identity: Internet

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department is developing alternative online identity authentication for people unable to use the Verify system developed by the Cabinet Office.

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to enable claimants to identify themselves online if they are unable to use the Verify system developed by the Cabinet Office.

Justin Tomlinson: DWP is planning to use GOV.UK Verify as the preferred option for users to prove their identity when accessing online services, and is working actively with Cabinet Office on implementation plans including data matching, analytics risk engines and complementary telephony and face to face identity security solutions.GOV.UK Verify is being developed and expanded to meet user needs. Based on plans, performance metrics and costs provided by Cabinet Office, GOV.UK Verify will work for 90% of the population by April 2016 and will continue to develop beyond that so that the vast majority of users of DWP services will be able to use GOV.UK Verify.Alternative plans to access services will be in place for those citizens who remain unable to identify themselves online using Verify on a service by service basis.

Department for Work and Pensions: Telephone Services

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many calls to his Department's helpline in 2015 related to universal credit; and what proportion such calls were of the total number of calls.

Priti Patel: There is no single Departmental helpline. The latest available figures showed that 47 million calls were answered across all DWP telephony service lines during 2015. In the same period, 400k calls were answered by Universal Credit Agents, equating to 0.9% of total calls.

Universal Credit: ICT

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of the new technology required to deliver universal credit has been completed to date.

Priti Patel: I again refer my Rt. Hon. Member to the answer I gave on the 11 January 2016UIN21335

Universal Credit

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on working families of his proposed reductions to the work allowance of universal credit.

Priti Patel: The impact of the work allowance change on working families cannot be considered in isolation – it is part of a broader package of measures announced at the Summer Budget, such as the increase to the personal tax allowance and introduction of the national living wage.

Department for Work and Pensions: Publishing

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the reasons are for the delay in transferring his Department's Transactional Bulk Print Services contract to Williams Lea from the current provider, Hewlett Packard, originally scheduled for February 2015; what the revised timetable is for that transfer; what assessment he has made of potential risks to service delivery arising from loss of key staff as a result of that delay; and what contingency plans his Department has prepared to mitigate such risks.

Justin Tomlinson: The DWP Print service will transfer to Williams Lea on 31st March 2016. All staff currently working on Print within Hewlett Packard (HP) will transfer over on this date via TUPE unless they have decided to opt out and accept alternative positions within HP prior to the date of transfer. All staff have been informed and consultation is actively underway in line with legislative requirements.In terms of contractual obligations, Williams Lea are obligated to transfer the service over by 31st March 2016. Williams Lea remain on track to meet their transfer date obligation and no service disruption is anticipated.

Social Security Benefits: Scotland

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the monetary value was of each type of benefits withdrawn in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland as a result of benefit sanctions in each month from 2010 to date.

Priti Patel: The Department does not make an estimate of the amount of benefit withdrawn as a result of benefit sanctions.

Personal Independence Payment

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of claimants of personal independence payments at the time of the introduction of the Centre for Health and Disability Assessments system have been subsequently taken off those payments; and what estimate he has made of the proportion of current claimants of that payment who will be taken off over the next six months.

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether targets have been set for Centre for Health and Disability Assessment staff on the number of people to take off personal independence payments.

Justin Tomlinson: The Centre for Health and Disability Assessments delivers Work Capability Assessments for Employment and Support Allowance and Incapacity Benefit claimants. They do not carry out assessments of Personal Independence Payment claimants which are delivered by Atos Healthcare and Capita.

Personal Independence Payment

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what use is made of correspondence from GPs in undertaking personal independence payments assessments.

Justin Tomlinson: Atos and Capita Healthcare Professionals and DWP Decision Makers give full consideration to all information provided by GPs when assessing Personal Independence Payment claimants.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Mass Media: Finance

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2016 to Question 21973, on mass media: finance, how much was paid to each recipient.

Mr Edward Vaizey: For the year to 31st March 2016, broadcasting and media bodies will receive the following funding from DCMS:Ofcom £91,409,000;BFI £22,225,000;S4C £6,762,000 (this is 9% of total funding for S4C, the remainder is from the BBC licence fee);and National Film and Television School £7,078,000.This is the cash payable to each organisation (as published on www.gov.uk) which totals £127m. The estimated £134m expenditure on page 53 of the Statement of Funding Policy 2015 is based on Government Accounting including depreciation, accruals and other accounting adjustments.

Public Libraries

Jo Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what restrictions exist for local authorities in respect of charging for membership of public libraries.

Jo Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department plans to allow local authorities to charge for membership of public libraries.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 restricts local authorities in England and Wales from charging for library facilities made available by the authority unless permitted by the Library Charges (England and Wales) Regulations 1991. These regulations empower local authorities in England and Wales to make certain charges for the provision of library facilities but this does not include charging for ordinary library membership.The Government has no plans to amend the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 to allow local authorities to specifically charge for ordinary membership of public libraries..

Broadband

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) Ofcom have made of the effectiveness of the gaining provider-led notification of transfer process for broadband since its introduction.

Mr Edward Vaizey: A Government call to evidence on switching principles has recently closed. We have committed to legislating for easier switching in the Communications markets, and we are now working with Ofcom to progress this.Ofcom’s assessment of the costs and benefits of implementing the enhanced process are set out in Chapter 9 athttp://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/consumer-switching-review/.

Video on Demand: Disability

Edward Argar: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if the Government will set out for broadcasters the level of progress it expects to see on the provision of subtitles and audio-descriptions for on-demand content before it reviews the legislation in that area.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Authority for TV On Demand (ATVOD) are currently preparing the report "Provision of Video on Demand Access Services 2015". This report, combined with meetings with broadcasters, content providers and platform operators, will inform Government's next steps.

Mobile Phones: Rural Areas

Kevin Hollinrake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the continued delivery of essential mobile telephone infrastructure to rural areas after the completion of the Mobile Infrastructure Project on 31 March 2016.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Improving mobile coverage remains a priority for the Government, and our landmark agreement in December 2014 with the four mobile network operators (MNOs) to provide voice and SMS text coverage to at least 90% of the UK landmass by 2017 will significantly improve coverage in the UK. It guarantees £5 billion of investment in mobile infrastructure, and as a result mobile services will come to some areas for the first time. It will halve partial not-spots (where the is coverage from at least one MNO, but not all four), and cut total not spots by two thirds by end 2017. Additionally, Telefonica has a licence obligation to deliver indoor 4G coverage to 98% of premises in the UK by 2017. Other MNOs have indicated that they will match this commitment.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Owner Occupation: Young People

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of trends in the number of young people who own their own home since 2010.

Brandon Lewis: The Government is committed to increasing the number of first time buyers. Action taken in support of this Includes:- extending the Right to Buy - which has supported council tenants into home ownership for decades - to housing association tenants. This will give another 1.3 million families the chance to purchase a home at right to buy level discounts;- Help to Buy schemes, targeting those wanting to get onto the housing ladder with 80% of sales going to first time buyers, which have so far enabled over 130,000 families to purchase a home;- launching, on 1 December 2015, the Help to Buy: ISA which will help first-time buyers save for their first deposit. The Government will top up savings by 25%, up to a maximum top-up of £3,000; and- a £2.3 billion fund to deliver 200,000 Starter Homes by 2020, to be exclusively offered to first time buyers under 40 at a 20% discount on market value.Information on housing tenure and the age of the household reference person in England, based on data from DCLG’s English Housing Survey, can be found (in Annex Table 1.4) at:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/469214/2013-14_Section_1_Households_tables_and_figures_FINAL.xlsx

Housing: Overcrowding

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many children in England have lived in overcrowded homes in each of the last five years.

Brandon Lewis: Holding answer received on 12 January 2016



In 2013-14, an estimated 1.2 million children in England were living in overcrowded accommodation. Estimates for recent years from the English Housing Survey are shown in the attached table.



Table
(Word Document, 13.67 KB)

Council Housing: Construction

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many council homes were built in England in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: For completeness the numbers of local authority dwellings built in England over the last 15 years are shown in the table below.2000/012001/022002/032003/042004/052005/062006/072007/08England180602001901003002502202008/092009/102010/112011/122012/132013/142014/15England4903701,1401,9601,3609101,360Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. These statistics are published both annually and quarterly.More comprehensive statistics on affordable housing, including private registered provider (housing association) houses, are published in the Department’s live tables 1006, 1006a, 1007 and 1008, at: http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply

Asian Restaurant Skills Board

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the work of the Asian Restaurant Skills Board.

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to support the Asian Restaurant Skills Board.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Asian Restaurant Skills Board is an independent industry-led initiative set up to promote the opportunities that the Asian cuisine industry offers for exciting and rewarding careers, increasing social mobility and celebrating the importance of Asian cuisine in modern Britain. DCLG has worked closely with the Board, helping it to promote the industry through a publicity campaign and raise funding for four degree-level scholarships in Asian Cuisine at the University of West London.

Multiple Occupation

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to require six-monthly inspections of all licensed houses in multiple occupation and bed and breakfasts catering for homeless people.

Mr Marcus Jones: Local authorities, familiar with stock in their areas, are best placed to set up appropriate inspection plans that take account of resources available and risk posed by individual properties. The Government has no plans to require six-monthly inspections of licensed houses in multiple occupation and bed and breakfast accommodation occupied by homeless persons.Local housing authorities must also exercise their functions in respect of hazards under the Housing, Health and Safety Rating System in relation to licensed houses in multiple occupation and ensure any accommodation they secure to accommodate homeless households is suitable. In considering "suitability" authorities must consider whether the accommodation is affordable for the household, its size, its condition, its accessibility and also its location.

Social Services: Finance

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what mechanisms his Department plans to put in place to ensure that all the revenue raised from the social care precept will be spent on social care.

Mr Marcus Jones: Section 151 officers of local authorities with social care responsibilities will be required to confirm whether their authority is using the flexibility to increase their council tax, and that any amount raised will be spent on adult social care services. The Department will expect that the figures provided will be reflected in established data returns to this Department during 2016-17.

Supported Housing: Housing Benefit

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2016 to Question 21572, on supported housing: housing benefit, for what reason the evidence review was not published in November 2015 as planned.

Brandon Lewis: There were delays to the procurement of the review which affected the timetable for fieldwork, leading to a clash with the General Election Purdah restrictions. In addition, the emerging complexity in the design and delivery of the review required additional fieldwork. All of which has contributed to the timetable for the review being extended.

Local Government Finance: Kirklees

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the unallocated financial reserves level was of Kirklees Council in the most recent local authority data outtrun held by his Department.

Mr Marcus Jones: The most recent local authority data outturn held by the Department for Communities and Local Government show the position as at 31 March 2015; Kirklees Council reported unallocated reserves of £38.0 million (this excludes other reserve balances for schools, public health and other earmarked reserves).The usual measure of reserves used is non-ringfenced revenue reserves, which comprises the sum of unallocated and other earmarked reserves: in Kirklees case £114.2 million.Full details can be found on the Department’s webpage at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financing-england-2014-to-2015-individual-local-authority-data-outturn

Bellwin Scheme

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which local authorities have recovered their costs for (a) flood prevention measures and (b) sandbags under the Bellwin Scheme to date.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether borough councils which provide sandbags to all residents to protect their properties during incidents of flooding are able to recover the costs of those sandbags under the Bellwin Scheme.

James Wharton: To date, 35 local authorities have registered an intention to claim under the activated Bellwin scheme but no final claims have yet been received.

Scotland Office

EU Nationals: Scotland

Callum McCaig: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many citizens of other EU countries are resident in Scotland.

David Mundell: Office of National Statistics data shows that there are approximately 181,000 citizens of other EU countries resident in Scotland.Published data is available from the Office of National Statistics and 2015 data will be available in August 2016.

EU Trade: Scotland

Callum McCaig: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what the annual value is of exports from Scotland to the EU.

David Mundell: The latest annual National Statistics published by the Scottish Government on 26 January 2015 - Scotland’s Global Connection Survey (GCS) for 2013 – shows that Scotland exported a total of £27.9bn of international export in services and goods,of which £12.9bn went to the EU 28.

HM Treasury

VAT

Kit Malthouse: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much HM Revenue and Customs has paid out in supplements following late payment of VAT returns in (a) 2015-16 and (b) each of the previous 10 years; and what steps his Department is taking to reduce that amount.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not routinely publish this information.The Government recognises the importance to businesses of receiving VAT repayments as quickly as possible. HMRC also has a duty to ensure that incorrect or fraudulent repayments are identified and prevented. All repayment claims are subject to automated risk analysis on receipt and 94% are processed for immediate payment. Of the remainder, 50% are approved for payment within 5 days. Repayment Supplement is designed to compensate customers where HMRC fails to make a repayment within 30 days. In 2014-15, HMRC paid Repayment Supplement in 0.3% of all cases.In the first half of 2015-16, HMRC carried out an extensive review of its repayment process with a view to minimising delays in cases where repayments are not authorised automatically. Following the review, new processes have been introduced and HMRC expects to reduce the incidence of Repayment Supplement as a result.

Solar Power: Industry

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the financial contribution of the solar power industry to the UK economy in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) 2015.

Damian Hinds: Information on the financial contribution of the solar power industry to the UK economy is not available. Solar electricity generation has been incentivised by the support under the Renewables Obligation, Contract for Difference and the Small Scale Feed in Tariff schemes. Information on private sectorinvestment from 2010-2014 is obtainable from the March 2015 DECC publication, “Delivering UK Energy Investment“ which is available here https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/419024/DECC_LowCarbonEnergyReport.pdfThe Office for National Statistics are due to publish a sector report on solar in February 2016 as part of their Low Carbon and Renewable Economy Survey for 2014 which is likely to provide further relevant information.

World Economy

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions his Department has had with Andrew Roberts from the Royal Bank of Scotland to discuss the state of the world economy.

Harriett Baldwin: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel

Stock Market: China

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the recent fall in Chinese stocks on Government plans to explore connecting the UK and Chinese markets.

Harriett Baldwin: HM Treasury is not conducting a feasibility study into future connections between UK and Chinese stock markets. The London Stock Exchange Group and the Shanghai Stock Exchange are carrying out a feasibility study on a stock market connection.HM Treasury continuously monitors global economic developments, including those in China, and their impact on the UK as part of the normal process of policy development.

Stock Market: China

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to protect UK businesses, the economy and the City from turbulence in Chinese stock markets.

Harriett Baldwin: The Treasury continuously monitors global economic developments, including those in China, and their impact on the UK as part of the normal process of policy development.The Chancellor has warned that “last year was the worst for global growth since the crash and this year opens with a dangerous cocktail of new threats from around the world.” As one of the most open trading economies in the world with a large financial sector, we have to recognise that the UK is not immune to the continued problems being experienced in the world economy.We should not let this put us off engaging with China. As the Chancellor said while leading the UK’s Economic and Financial Dialogue with China in September 2015, both countries: “have a shared commitment to laying the foundations for stronger, more productive economies that can weather periods of uncertainty. At the same time, we need to continue to pursue the longer-term reform challenges that both our governments are pursuing.”The Bank of England’s 2015 stress tests modelled a severe slowdown in commodities and emerging markets. No banks were required to submit revised capital plans following the stress tests. This provides further reassurance that the UK’s banking system is capable of weathering future financial storms both at home and abroad.

Financial Markets

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government has taken to prevent predatory high-frequency trading.

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many high-frequency traders have been investigated by the Financial Conduct Authority for predatory practices.

Harriett Baldwin: It would not be appropriate for the Government to comment on any ongoing investigations. This is an operational matter for the FCA which is an independent regulator. I have transferred this question across to them and they will respond fully in due course.The Government is clear that any attempted manipulation of any financial market is completely unacceptable. The integrity of the City matters to the economy of Britain, and that is why the Government is taking action at home, in Europe, and globally, to ensure that this behaviour is punished and that similar scandals cannot occur again.The Government has taken a number of steps to strengthen financial regulation in the UK. These include introducing the Senior Managers and Certification Regime to provide for effective regulation of individual conduct and accountability in the banking sector. The Bank of England and Financial Services Bill, now before the House of Commons, will extend this regime to cover all authorised financial services firms, including dealers in securities and other non-banks which may engage in high-frequency trading (HFT).The Government has supported the European Union (EU) Markets in Financial Instruments Directive 2 (MiFID 2), which from 2017 will alter the regulatory landscape in relation to automated trading including HFT. As part of this, HFT firms will be required to disclose information concerning their trading activities to their regulator in order to increase the regulatory supervision of these markets.

Revenue and Customs: Scotland

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of HM Revenue and Customs staff in Scotland are deemed to be within reasonable daily travel distance of the two proposed regional centres; and on what assumptions those estimates were based.

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the effect of the HM Revenue and Customs Location Strategy on future tax revenues.

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether union representatives of HM Revenue and Customs employees are permitted to send questionnaires to union members using official email.

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost of implementing HM Revenue and Customs' Location Strategy over the next 10 years.

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what comparative estimate he has made of the property-related costs of the proposed HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) regional centres in Edinburgh and Glasgow and with HMRC's existing property in Dundee.

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) office closures and staff reductions in HMRC offices in each area in Scotland between 2006 and 2013, on (a) local tax compliance across all heads of duty, (b) the Scottish economy, (c) equal opportunities in Scotland, (d) the environment and (e) staff whose offices have closed.

Chris Law: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether preliminary impact assessments were carried out on the effect of the current HM Revenue and Customs Location Strategy on local tax compliance, across all heads of duty, the Scottish economy, equal opportunities in Scotland, the environment, and the individual staff whose offices are to be closed and what those assessments have indicated.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) Location Programme is the result of an extended period of consultation and deliberation. The Department has taken account of a number of criteria in reaching its decisions, including the quality of local transport links, the local labour market and future workforce supply, the cost of buildings and asset value, and the need to retain the staff and skills it needs to continue its transformation. These changes will reduce HMRC’s estates costs by around £100 million a year by 2025.HMRC’s modelling estimates that the majority of staff in Scotland live within Reasonable Daily Travel of Glasgow or Edinburgh. Reasonable Daily Travel is calculated in line with established HR policies and procedures. Every worker at HMRC will have a one-to-one meeting with their manager to discuss their individual circumstances.HMRC conducted high level People Impact and Equality Assessments to inform its planning. The Department plans to update these once discussions have been held with its staff.Activities of trade union representatives are governed by long-standing agreements with departments.

Stock Market: China

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the feasibility study on the possibility of connecting UK and Chinese stock markets will be completed.

Harriett Baldwin: The London Stock Exchange Group and the Shanghai Stock Exchange are carrying out a feasibility study on a stock market connection, and will determine the date for completion in due course.

Welfare Tax Credits

Paul Blomfield: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2016 to Question 20785, what proportion of tax credit recipients had their credits erroneously withdrawn when their children progressed into post-16 education in each of the last five financial years.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs do not hold the requested data.

Refugees: Syria

Andrew Rosindell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on proposals made by his German counterpart that an EU-wide petrol tax be levied to fund aid for Syrian refugees; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Gauke: The financing system for the EU budget for 2014-2020 was agreed in 2013, when the Prime Minister secured the UK objectives of no new own resources or EU-wide taxes to finance EU spending, and no change to the UK rebate. This House ratified that deal last summer.The Government’s position remains unchanged. The UK retains its veto over any proposed change to the financing system for the EU budget, and over any EU tax legislation. The Government will not sign up to anything that undermines the UK's tax sovereignty.

Economic Situation: China

Andrew Rosindell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implementation of the recent economic slowdown in China on his Department's policy on bilateral trade and investment with that country.

Harriett Baldwin: The Treasury continuously monitors global economic developments, including those in China, and their impact on the UK as part of the normal process of policy development.The Chancellor has warned that “last year was the worst for global growth since the crash and this year opens with a dangerous cocktail of new threats from around the world.” As one of the most open trading economies in the world with a large financial sector, we have to recognise that the UK is not immune to the continued problems being experienced in the world economy.We should not let this put us off engaging with China. As the Chancellor said while leading the UK’s Economic and Financial Dialogue with China in September 2015, both countries: “have a shared commitment to laying the foundations for stronger, more productive economies that can weather periods of uncertainty. At the same time, we need to continue to pursue the longer-term reform challenges that both our governments are pursuing.”The UK’s exports to China have grown rapidly; since 2010, exports of UK goods to China have grown by over 90%. Even if China’s GDP growth slows to 5%, it will still add an economy the size of France to global GDP by 2020. This is well below the central scenario: the IMF forecasts China’s GDP growth to average 6.2% over the next 5 years.

Fuels: Excise Duties

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether it is his policy to change the rate of fuel duty applied to certain isolated and rural areas in response to changes in oil price.

Damian Hinds: The rural fuel duty rebate scheme offers a 5 pence per litre discount on fuel duty for fuel sold in qualifying areas. The rebate does not vary with the price of wholesale oil.

Beer: Excise Duties

Steve McCabe: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to reduce beer duty by one per cent.

Damian Hinds: The government is committed to supporting the beer industry. The tax on a typical pint of beer was cut by a penny at March Budget 2015, building on the duty cuts at Budget 2014 and Budget 2013.The government continues to keep all taxes under review and decisions on tax policy are made as part of the Budget process.

Video Games: Tax Allowances

Chris White: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many businesses benefited from video games tax relief in 2014-15; what the cost of that relief was to his Department in that year; and what the return on investment was for the economy as a result of that relief.

Mr David Gauke: Video Games Tax Relief is forecast to cost the Exchequer £10m in 2014-15. The first Official Statistics on the number of claims and cost of Video Games Tax Relief will be published in Summer 2016, allowing sufficient time for claims to have been submitted for the 2014-15 tax year. No estimate of the benefit for the economy as a whole is available.The forecast has been certified by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility and is consistent with their latest forecast of Corporation Tax receipts.

National Insurance Contributions

Andrew Griffiths: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the cost to the public purse has been of the extension of the Class 1 Secondary National Insurance Contributions exemption for employees aged under 21 to date.

Mr David Gauke: The information requested is not available as HM Revenue and Customs does not routinely produce in-year estimates of the cost of abolishing Class 1 employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) for employees under the age of 21.However a full year costing estimate of this policy is published in table 2.2 of Budget 2015 which is available from the following address:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/416330/47881_Budget_2015_Web_Accessible.pdfThe estimates for each financial year from 2015 to 2020 are as follows: Employer NICs: abolish for under 21s basic rate earnings£ million2015-162016-172017-182018-192019-20-450-500-535-560-585These estimates are based on the Survey of Personal Incomes (SPI) outturn data up to 2012-13, and then projected to 2019-20 in line with the Office for Budget Responsibility's March 2015 economic and fiscal outlook.

Carers: Welfare Tax Credits

Joanna  Cherry: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to ensure that parents who are the sole carer for disabled children aged over 18 will not lose out on vital income as a result of the reforms of tax credits.

Damian Hinds: As announced at Summer Budget, families will no longer be able to claim additional support through Child Tax Credit or Universal Credit for third or subsequent children in a family where the child is born after April 2017.Third or subsequent disabled children born after April 2017 will still receive the disabled child element and the severely disabled child element in Child Tax Credit and the disabled child addition in Universal Credit, but not the child element.

Cabinet Office

Government Departments: Paper

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to ensure a reduction in the use of paper in departments.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 22 January 2016



Individual Departments are responsible for making their own reductions to their use of paper, including as part of the Greening Government Commitments. The Cabinet Office’s own use of paper in 2015/16 to date has reduced by around 60% against the 2009/10 baseline. This reduction has been achieved including through the use of more flexible laptop-based IT and electronic records systems which means that printing requirements have reduced considerably.

Electoral Register

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of people removed from the electoral register since December 2015 are (a) men and (b) women.

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people who voted in the 2015 General Election are not on the latest electoral register.

John Penrose: Holding answer received on 22 January 2016



The electoral registers used for the 2015 General Election contained over 400,000 more entries than the last registers published prior to the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER). As such, suggestions that IER would lead to a decline in registration levels were simply incorrect.While data is not available on the number of non-IER registered electors who voted at the 2015 General Election, the Electoral Commission found 96% of the entries on the electoral register in May 2015 were already registered under IER.The Electoral Commission is planning to publish a report in February/March 2016 on the state of the December 2015 registers. This is expected to include data on the number of register entries and on the number of remaining non-IER registered entries removed in December.

Cabinet Office: Correspondence

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of ministerial letters have been signed on behalf of Ministers in their absence in the last 12 months.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 22 January 2016



This information is not held and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.In line with the guidance on handling Ministerial correspondence, the Cabinet Office ensures that all correspondence, wherever possible, is personally hand-signed by the appropriate responsible Minister.Guidance to Departments on handling correspondence is available on Gov.uk - https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/441892/Cabinet_Office_Guidance_on_correspondence.pdf

Public Sector: Oldham

Jim McMahon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will commission an assessment of the potential economic impact on Oldham of the reduction in Oldham's public estate.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 22 January 2016



The Government Property Unit is working closely with Oldham Council and others across Greater Manchester on future plans across the public sector estate. Oldham Council is part of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority Partnership on the One Public Estate Programme. The programme, delivered by Cabinet Office and the Local Government Association, aims to maximise local economic growth from better use of public assets. 108 councils have recently joined a third phase of the programme. Together, they expect to generate £172 million capital receipts, reduce running costs by £65 million, and create 30,000 new homes and 43,000 new jobs over the next 5 years.

Emergencies: Drug Resistance

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how his Department calculated the risk of antimicrobial resistance for the National Risk Register of Civil Emergencies published in 2015.

Mr Oliver Letwin: The National Risk Register of Civil Emergencies (NRR) is the public-facing version of the National Risk Assessment (NRA), a classified assessment of the civil emergency risks facing the UK over the next five years. The NRR is published by the Civil Contingencies Secretariat, Cabinet Office. Due to sensitivities, beyond the detail contained within the NRR (particularly Chapter 3 of the 2015 iteration) the NRA methodology is not for public disclosure. However, every risk in the NRR is owned and assessed by a lead government department. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is owned by the Department of Health, which is preparing a paper for submission to the Lancet that sets out the analytical methods used to underpin the National AMR Strategy.

Alcoholic Drinks and Drugs: Misuse

Luciana Berger: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Prime Minister's speech of 11 January 2016, on life chances, what the sources of the £60 million of social investment for drug and alcohol treatment are expected to be.

Mr Rob Wilson: The Government has actively supported the growth of the social investment market over the last five years. This includes through the establishment of Big Society Capital which is investing up to £600m in growing the social investment market, and the Social Investment Tax Relief which is incentivising individual investors to make social investments. Other social investors investing in social impact bonds include charitable trusts and foundations as well as institutional investors and dedicated social impact funds.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Israel: Origin Marking

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what changes she plans to make to advice on her Department's website relating to (a) goods for which an origin is indicated on their labelling, (b) goods from Golan and (c) other goods in response to the European Commission's Interpretative Notice on indication of origin of goods from the territories occupied by Israel since June 1967, published on 11 November 2015.

George Eustice: The Commission’s Notice recommends that goods imported into the EU which originate from Israeli settlements in the occupied territories should bear an indication which makes that provenance clear. That recommendation is already included in the current technical advice to UK retailers and importers concerning the labelling of agricultural produce from the West Bank which was issued by Defra in 2009. There is therefore no need for changes at this stage.

Livestock: Transport

Craig Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of vehicles transporting livestock through UK ports were inspected by the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency in each of the last three years; and in what proportion of such inspections animal ear tags were physically inspected.

George Eustice: The information requested is not available. The Animal and Plant Health Agency does not hold comprehensive data on the proportion of livestock vehicles transported through GB ports that were subject to inspection.However, in the specific case of exports of livestock for slaughter from GB, 100% of livestock vehicles and 100% of ear tags were physically inspected by APHA at the point of loading on every occasion in each of the last 3 years.

Countryside Stewardship Scheme

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many farmers who were on the Higher Level Scheme and Entry Level Scheme have joined the Countryside Stewardship Scheme; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: Natural England is currently processing 2,848 applications for the new Countryside Stewardship Scheme. 1,526 agreements have been offered so far and 859 have been accepted. All agreements will have a start date of 1 January 2016.‪ The number of farmers applying who were formerly in Entry Level Stewardship is not yet known. Natural England is, however, currently working on applications from at least 159 farmers whose Higher Level Stewardship agreements are due to end in 2016.

Meat: Supermarkets

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to increase the amount of British meat sold in supermarkets.

George Eustice: 2016 is the Year of Great British food; there will be a series of events throughout the year to generate interest in British food. The campaign will act as a catalyst for growth and innovation of British food in domestic and export markets inspiring emerging, high potential British food businesses and new talent to the sector.Since April 2015, fresh and frozen pork, poultry, sheep and goat must now have its country of origin labelled by law and many retailers and caterers are taking steps to source and signpost British produce.

Neonicotinoids

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy that there will be no further emergency authorisations of the use of neonicotinoid pesticides.

George Eustice: EU legislation provides for Member States to authorise limited and controlled use of a pesticide on an exceptional basis in emergency situations to “control a danger which cannot be contained by any other reasonable means”. Emergency authorisations are not granted automatically and applications must be based on evidence relating to the need for the pesticide and possible harmful effects.Emergency authorisations are granted for a maximum of 120 days and those issued for neonicotinoids in 2015 have now expired. Any future applications will be considered by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate of the Health and Safety Executive, against strict criteria.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the merits of refunding money lost by farmers under the modulation scheme to farmers who are taking part in the trial badger cull scheme.

George Eustice: The Government decided to transfer 12% of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Direct Payments (Pillar 1) budget to the Rural Development (Pillar 2) budget in England with effect from the 2014 Scheme year. The transfer is irreversible. Farmers in England are also able to apply for Rural Development Programme environmental schemes or for grants to help improve their competitiveness or grow their business.Delivery of the badger control policy is led and funded by farmers and landowners. Defra has published details of the resultant costs it incurred in 2013 and 2014.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Bourne Report on the incidence of bovine TB in badger cull areas been updated since 2014.

George Eustice: Cull zone results published in the Independent Scientific Report on the Randomised Badger Culling Trials (RBCT) (chaired by Professor John Bourne) were last updated with data up to March 2013. There are no plans to do any further analysis of TB incidence in the RBCT areas

Pheasants: Imports

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many pheasant (a) eggs for hatching, (b) chicks and (c) poults were imported into England from each EU country in the last year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many partridge (a) eggs for hatching, (b) chicks and (c) poults were imported into England from each EU country in the last year for which figures are available.

George Eustice: Information is available for live birds and hatching eggs. The number imported from each EU Member State in 2015 was as follows:Partridge (Perdix\Alectoris)Pheasant (Phasianus)MixedEU CountryNumberEU CountryNumberEU CountryNumberLive BirdsFrance278,638France5,811,323France70,253Belgium50,500Hatching EggsGermany320France9,423486Portugal24,120Denmark2,000Spain93,600Poland48,170

Dogs: Tagging

Karl McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she plans to take to ensure that local authorities which find a dog dead or injured scan the dog's microchip and contact its owners.

Karl McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to ensure that pet rescue centres scan the microchip of dogs in their care and contact their owners.

George Eustice: Following a debate in the Westminster Hall on 2 March 2015, the then Minister of State, for the Department of Transport undertook to instruct the Highways Agency to make it their policy to ensure that it collects and identifies every animal that is killed on the strategic road network and to contact the owners by whatever practicable means. The Minister also wrote to all local highway authorities and Transport for London to draw attention to the Government’s policy and reflect on their own policy. It is established good practice for all authorities, including local authorities and dog rescue centres that come into contact with a stray, injured or deceased dog to scan it for a microchip so that the dog’s keeper can be traced. To assist this process, the Kennel Club has donated microchip scanners to every local authority in England and Wales. The compulsory microchipping of all dogs in Great Britain comes into force on 6 April 2016.

Department of Health

Fertility

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidelines NICE issues for (a) NHS trusts and (b) patients on changes to funding of fertility treatments.

Jane Ellison: In February 2013 the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published a clinical guideline on the assessment and treatment of fertility problems, which constitutes best practice guidance for the National Health Service. NICE also published a quality standard on fertility problems in October 2014. Further information on NICE’s guidance on fertility is available on its website at:www.nice.org.uk/guidance/conditions-and-diseases/fertility--pregnancy-and-childbirth/fertility.NICE clinical guidelines and quality standards are not mandatory, but NHS organisations are expected to take them fully into account in the services that they offer to patients.

Pain

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Royal College of Anaesthetists' report entitled, Core Standards for Pain Management Services in the UK, published in October 2015, whether his Department has given any consideration to the contents of that report.

Jane Ellison: NHS England has welcomed the publication of the Core Standards for Pain Management report in the United Kingdom, published by the Faculty of Pain Medicine of the Royal College of Anaesthetists in October 2015. Andrew Baranowski, the Chair of NHS England’s Clinical Reference Group for Specialised Pain contributed to this work, which sets out core standards and key recommendations in the management of pain; the commissioning of pain management services and the development of the workforce.The report is available at:http://www.rcoa.ac.uk/system/files/FPM-CSPMS-UK2015.pdf

Dental Services: North West

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people in (a) Burnley, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West had an appointment with an NHS dentist in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012, (iv) 2013, (v) 2014 and (vi) 2015.

Alistair Burt: Information is not available in the format requested.The table below shows the unique number of patients who received National Health Service dental care in the previous 24 months. An equivalent measure covering the 12 month period is not available. 1 April 2008 – 31 March 20101 April 2009 – 31 March 20111 April 2010 – 31 March 20121 April 2011- 31 March 20131 April 2012 – 31 March 20141 April 2013 – 31 March 2015NHS East Lancashire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG)----218,979222,038Lancashire Local Authority----671,482670,931NHS England North (Lancashire and Greater Manchester)----2,496,1492,508,845East Lancashire Primary Care Trust (PCT)186,295200,034210,839219,406--North West Strategic Health Authority (SHA)4,180,8554,251,5054,302,2184,323,082--Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC)Notes: Includes patients seen by an NHS dentist, including work undertaken by dentists under vocational training and orthodontic patients. Does not cover dental treatment carried out in hospitals under Hospital Dental Services, nor under services provided privately.Number of patients seen shows the number of individual patients who received care or treatment from an NHS dentist at least once in a 24 month period (patients are counted on their first visit only, e.g. if a patient has visited the dentist twice, they will only appear in the patients seen data set once).HSCIC dental data are not available at the geographies requested. The latest information is available at CCG, LA and NHS Geography Region and earlier years are only available at PCT and SHA level.

Alcoholic Drinks: Labelling

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy that bottles and cans containing alcoholic drinks should display the calorie count of the drink.

Jane Ellison: Current labelling regulations for alcoholic drinks are set at a European level. The United Kingdom did secure a provision for voluntary calorie labelling, which some businesses are already doing. The possibility of mandating calorie labelling on alcohol is under discussion at European Union level.

HIV Infection

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much Public Health England (PHE) plans to spend on HIV prevention in 2016-17; and which HIV-prevention projects PHE plans to support financially in that year.

Jane Ellison: In 2016/17 Public Health England (PHE) will support local, regional and national HIV prevention activities by providing stakeholders, commissioners and policy makers with specialist public health services. PHE is working through its detailed budget setting process having regard for the outcome of the Spending Review. PHE is not yet in a position therefore to confirm funding figures for 2016/17.

Medicine: Education

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 18 January 2016 to Question 22318, what estimate his Department has made of the total value of NHS Bursaries issued to medical students in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Gummer: Information of the total value of National Health Service maintenance bursaries issued to medical students in each of the last five complete financial years is shown in the following table.  Financial Year1 Bursary Expenditure (£)32010/11222,228,3172011/12221,887,0452012/13222,966,8042013/14223,424,6942014/15223,235,955Source: NHS Business Services Authority1Covers the period 1 April to 31 March.2Figures extracted from Annual Report for the respective financial year.3The NHS Bursary includes the basic maintenance award, all supplementary allowances and one off payments.NHS Bursaries are available to undergraduate medical students from the fifth year of the undergraduate degree and to graduates from the second year of the four year accelerated degree.

Members: Correspondence

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects to respond to the letter of 27 October 2015 from the hon. Member for Leeds North West about the It's Personal campaign.

Jane Ellison: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State responded to the hon. Member’s letter of 27 October 2015 on 24 November 2015.

Health Services

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to simplify and make more accessible the diagnostic pathway in order to improve speed of diagnosis and access to support.

Jane Ellison: In September 2015, the NHS England Board approved the development of a personalised medicine strategy for the National Health Service which will be based around four overarching principles: the prediction and prevention of disease; more precise diagnoses; targeted and personalised interventions; and a more participatory role for patients.The strategy will build on the 100,000 Genomes Project, which is moving the NHS to a new model of diagnosis and treatment based on the understanding of underlying genetic causes and drivers of disease and a comprehensive phenotypic characterisation of the disease (rather than deduction from symptoms and individual diagnostic tests). Personalised medicine informs the selection of the most appropriate treatment and better outcomes for individual patients – the right drug at the right time, earlier screening and treatment, smarter monitoring and the adjustment of treatments.Furthermore, the Independent Cancer Taskforce recognised the need for more accessible molecular diagnostic provision in their report ‘Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes’ published in July 2015. In September 2015, the Department confirmed a commitment from NHS England to implement the Taskforce’s recommendations on molecular diagnostics.NHS England is currently working with partners across the healthcare system to determine how best to take forward the recommendations of the Taskforce, and has appointed Cally Palmer as National Cancer Director to lead on implementation, as well as new cancer vanguards to redesign care and patient experience.She has set up a new Cancer Transformation Board to implement the strategy, and this met for the first time on Monday 25 January 2016. There will also be a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Harpal Kumar, to oversee and scrutinise the work of the Transformation Board. Timeframes and phasing for implementation will be dependent on the final financial settlement reached as a result of the spending review.

Lung Cancer: Drugs

Mrs Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he made of the number of lung cancer patients in England who have accessed the immuno-oncology drug nivolumab via private healthcare providers or other private sources of funding in the last year; and when NICE will make its final decision about NHS patients gaining access to that drug.

George Freeman: The Department does not hold the requested information concerning private healthcare or other private sources of funding.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence currently has two technology appraisals of nivolumab for lung cancer in development:(i) Nivolumab for previously treated locally advanced or metastatic squamous non-small-cell lung cancer, with an anticipated publication date of May 2016.(ii) Nivolumab for previously treated locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous non-small-cell lung cancer, with an anticipated publication date of September 2016.

Medicine: Research

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what amount was spent on each category of medical research by the (a) National Institute for Health Research and (b) Medical Research Council in the last period for which figures are available.

George Freeman: Spend on research funded directly by the Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) is categorised by Health Research Classification System (HRCS) health categories. NIHR expenditure on research infrastructure and systems where spend cannot be attributed to health categories is excluded. The following table shows NIHR spend in health categories in 2014/15.Blood£ million  8.2Cancer134.7Cardiovascular49.5Congenital Disorders7.2Ear4.1Eye18.5Generic Health Relevance94.4Infection31.5Inflammatory and Immune System40.5Injuries and Accidents9.5Mental Health72.6Metabolic and Endocrine30.8Musculoskeletal30.3Neurological46.7Oral and Gastrointestinal32.1Other15.0Renal and Urogenital15.3Reproductive Health and Childbirth37.8Respiratory25.5Skin11.0Stroke25.5TOTAL740.7The Medical Research Council (MRC) is funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. MRC expenditure in 2014/15 by HRCS health categories and HRCS research categories is shown in the following tables.HRCS health categories£Blood4,873,256Cancer46,355,768Cardiovascular16,011,307Congenital Disorders3,981,202Ear4,937,567Eye6,128,441Generic Health Relevance193,561,897Infection102,417,396Inflammatory and Immune System34,285,313Injuries and Accidents632,385Mental Health31,812,070Metabolic and Endocrine21,171,874Musculoskeletal14,987,531Neurological80,262,500Oral and Gastrointestinal10,704,217Other4,352,710Renal and Urogenital4,880,527Reproductive Health and Childbirth18,593,964Respiratory10,778,496Skin2,657,978Stroke4,317,667No HRCS Coding7,536,387No HRCS Coding - Another Council led1,227,345Total626,467,798  HRCS research categories£1. Underpinning210,059,6662. Mechanisms & Origins235,134,4543. Prevention24,164,1074. Detection & Diagnosis32,463,6195. Treatment Development54,143,3646. Treatment Evaluation40,136,3407. Disease Management4,299,6468. Health Services17,268,954No HRCS Coding7,738,174No HRCS Coding - Another Council led1,059,473Total626,467,798

Maternity Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what support his Department offers to women who decide to have a baby later in life.

Ben Gummer: Women, regardless of their age, should receive personalised maternity care that focuses on the best outcomes for them and their babies.Early access to antenatal care, especially for women over 35, helps to ensure they receive the right care. As soon as they know they are pregnant, women are encouraged to contact their maternity service for a full assessment of their health, risk factors and choices so that a personalised approach to their care can be taken.

Palliative Care

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve end of life care and the account taken of the needs of patients with regard to (a) hydration and (b) respect and dignity.

Ben Gummer: The Government is committed to making improvements in the quality of care people experience at the end of life.In 2014, we set out five priorities for care of the dying person which should underpin the care being delivered to all dying people. The priorities for care state that an individual plan of care, which includes food and drink, symptom control and psychological, social and spiritual support, is agreed, co-ordinated and delivered with compassion.In December 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidance on the care of dying adults in the last days of life, including guidance on medical nutrition and hydration. Clinicians and commissioners should have regard to this guidance when making decisions about care for people at the end of life.The priorities also set out the critical importance of compassion, respect and dignity in delivering care to dying people and the implications, for staff, commissioners and providers, when making decisions about how end of life care services will meet the needs of local people. The new approach to care, based on these fundamental principles, is being used by clinicians across the country.In the coming months, we will be setting out the Department’s plans for building on this progress and achieving further quality improvements in end of life care throughout this Parliament.

Alcoholic Drinks and Drugs: Misuse

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much has been spent on treatment for drug and alcohol addiction in (a) each year since 2010 and (b) each month of 2015.

Jane Ellison: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 14 January 2016 to Question 21900.It is not possible to provide a breakdown of monthly spend on treatment for drug and alcohol addiction due to disproportionate cost.

NHS: Private Sector

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether NHS bodies which carry out surgery to repair work performed by outsourcing companies are able to claim back the costs of carrying out that work.

George Freeman: Whether or not National Health Service bodies are able to claim back the costs depends on a number of circumstances. For instance:- A clinical commissioning group (CCG) may have placed a contract for elective surgery with an independent sector provider. A patient treated in this provider’s hospital may experience complications and require further treatment, which has to be arranged under the CCG’s separate contract with the local NHS trust or foundation trust (FT) (perhaps because it has the facilities to carry out more specialist treatment); or- An NHS trust or FT may sub-contract surgical procedures to an independent sector provider. Again, a patient treated at the sub-contractor’s hospital may experience complications and require further treatment, which has to be carried out by the NHS Trust or FT (again, because it has the facilities to carry out more specialist treatment).The terms of such subcontracts are not nationally prescribed, but it would be usual for such a sub-contract to require the sub-contractor to indemnify the NHS provider for the cost it incurs as a result of negligent or inadequate treatment on the part of the sub-contractor.However, it is important to be clear that complications after surgery are not necessarily associated with negligence. It is normal for patients experiencing complications to be referred to the hospital which can provide the best care. In these circumstances, each NHS provider will normally be paid by the relevant NHS commissioner for the specific service it has provided to the patient.In the first example, the NHS trust or FT will be paid in full by its local CCG for the further treatment it has provided, at the normal national prices laid down in the National Tariff Payment System. Normally, the CCG would also have paid for the initial treatment provided by the independent sector provider, but if there is evidence of breach of contract or negligence, the CCG would be entitled to be indemnified for the additional costs of further treatment.In the second example, the NHS provider is responsible to the commissioner both for the treatment it has carried out itself and under sub-contract by the independent sector provider. It will therefore be paid by its CCG at National Tariff prices for all the operations that have been undertaken at both hospitals – though, again, this would be subject to the potential for the CCG to withhold payment to in a clear case of negligence or breach of contractual requirements. Payment between the NHS provider and its sub-contractor would be a matter for those parties to agree locally between themselves, as a part of their sub-contract.

NHS: Private Sector

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much compensation the NHS has paid to patients who were injured by healthcare carried out by private contractors in each of the last five years.

Ben Gummer: The Department does not hold this information centrally; the answer has been supplied by the National Health Service Litigation Authority (NHS LA).The table below shows all payments made on claims against private providers as at 31 December 2015 (open and closed claims) for payment years 2010/11 to 2014/15.Year of PaymentDamages £Defence Costs £Claimant Costs £Total Paid £2010/11  2011/12  2012/13  2013/14  2014/153,213,372  4,143,937  8,132,597  8,522,797  8,905,057378,903  621,887  807,120  868,765  1,096,9351,251,698  1,989,256  3,312,219  4,172,732  4,504,9674,843,973  6,755,080  12,251,935  13,564,293  14,506,960Total32,917,7603,773,61015,230,87151,922,241Source: NHSLADate: January 2016Prior to that date indemnity cover was provided by the referring National Health Service body. Since 1 April 2013 independent providers have been directly eligible for membership of the clinical negligence scheme for trusts. The figures in the table represent all private provider claims for each of the last five years.

NHS: Private Sector

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether there is any requirement for NHS bodies which outsource health services to ensure that companies with which they contract are fully insured.

George Freeman: Clinical commissioning groups and NHS England, when commissioning foundation trusts, NHS trusts and others to deliver non-primary care clinical services, must do so using the NHS Standard Contract published each year by NHS England.The NHS Standard Contract requires the provider of clinical services to “put in place and maintain appropriate indemnity arrangements in respect of:- employers’ liability;- clinical negligence;- public liability; and- professional negligence.

NHS: Private Sector

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether private outsourcing companies which take on NHS contracts and obtain insurance by paying into the NHS insurance scheme are required to contribute (a) full or (b) a partial cost of that cover.

Ben Gummer: The NHS Litigation Authority is responsible for administering all National Health Service risk pooling schemes. Since April 2013, independent sector providers of healthcare have been able to obtain indemnity cover under the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST). All CNST members are required to pay their actuarially assessed costs for each year that they are a member of the scheme.

Strokes

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to promote awareness across NHS trusts in England of preventative measures to reduce the risk of atrial fibrillation-related strokes.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England’s (PHE) programme on ‘Stroke and vascular dementia prevention for people with atrial fibrillation’ works with key stakeholders to increase prioritisation for the prevention of atrial fibrillation related strokes.PHE’s National Cardiovascular Intelligence Network contributed to the development of atrial fibrillation intelligence packs to help commissioners to identify where improvements can be made to reduce the risk of stroke by improving the detection and treatment of atrial fibrillation.The NHS Health Checks best practice guidance recommends that a pulse check is carried out as part of the process of taking a blood pressure reading and those individuals who are found to have an irregular pulse rhythm should be referred to a general practitioner for further investigation.Recent research shows that, due to the NHS Health Check and appropriate clinical treatment, 2,500 people will have avoided a major cardiovascular event such as heart attack or stroke over the last five years.

Mental Health Services: Pregnant Women

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of additional perinatal specialist mental health practitioners that will be needed to meet the additional requirements set out in the Prime Minister's speech on life chances of 11 January 2016.

Ben Gummer: Health Education England (HEE) is working closely with NHS England to better understand the future workforce commissioning requirements needed to deliver access for all to the right perinatal mental health services.The HEE Perinatal Mental Health programme aims to ensure that the maternity workforce has access to the right skills and knowledge that will enable them to provide high quality perinatal mental health care from prevention through to treatment for women throughout pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period. This includes partnership working with stakeholders to meet multi professional education and training requirements.

Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the funding for health measures and services referred to by the Prime Minister in his speech of 11 January 2016, on life chances, will be derived from invest to save measures.

Ben Gummer: The £30 million of funding to tackle drug and alcohol dependency is part of the larger £80 million fund announced by the Chancellor in the Spending Review, to catalyse new local solutions to complex and expensive social issues through Social Impact Bonds.Funding for the remaining mental health measures and services is derived from the additional funding announced in the Autumn Statement 2014 and March Budget 2015 to support children and young people’s mental health and eating disorders services, and in November 2015 as part of the Department’s overall Spending Review settlement.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2016 to Question 22946, what action he will take to deal with clinical commissioning groups found not to have arrangements in place to offer mental health patients a choice of provider.

Ben Gummer: Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are required, as part of their statutory obligations, to ensure patients can exercise their legal rights to choice for a first elective referral, including for mental health services.Choice is an important feature of the Sustainability and Transformation Plans that CCGs have been asked to put in place through the recently-issued NHS Planning Guidance.NHS England is providing guidance and support to help them meet these requirements and will monitor and assure their implementation including through a new Assessment Framework. If providers or patients have concerns about CCGs ensuring that rights to choice are being appropriately upheld, Monitor as the sector regulator may investigate and specify improvement action by the CCGs, where necessary.

Musgrove Park Hospital Taunton

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the NHS of (a) fixing eye operations contracted out by Musgrove Park Hospital which had a high failure rate and (b) paying compensation for eye injuries sustained as a result of operations outsourced by Musgrove Park Hospital.

Ben Gummer: The Department does not hold the information requested; a response has been supplied by the National Health Service Litigation Authority.To date 10 claims have been received in relation to this initiative. Two claims have been paid at a total cost of £87,250 inclusive of legal costs. The remaining eight claims are outstanding and it would not be appropriate to reveal financial information at this stage.